Ten Years within the Lives of Farmer Heroes: Mike & Molly Peterson on Constructing A Sustainable Farm Life – Farm Aid

When the annual Farm Aid festival came to Virginia in 2016, we had the pleasure and privilege of assembly Mike and Molly Peterson of Heritage Hollow Farms in Rappahannock County, Virginia. Molly and Mike’s story of coming to agriculture from different careers is inspiring; Mike was a chef in search of to get nearer to the roots of the meals he served and Molly was (and stays) an expert photographer dedicated to displaying the thrill and challenges of farm life (in addition to documenting all of the monumental moments of life, like weddings, births and graduations). Molly’s stunning farm pictures have graced the Farm Aid stage since 2016 and her present challenge includes documenting a neighboring regenerative farm.

Shortly after Farm Aid 2016, Heritage Hollow Farm received a $50,000 contest, competing in opposition to companies in lots of industries throughout the nation, the farm received for its modern communications and the group Mike and Molly constructed via them. The promise of their small-scale farm appeared limitless, illustrative of the perfect potential of household farm agriculture. But, as Molly mentioned within the video saying their win, “Farming can be one of the most soul fulfilling and soul crushing careers–and often in the same day.” I checked in with Mike a pair weeks in the past to be taught in regards to the ups and down they’ve skilled since 2016.

Heritage Hollow Farms was Mike and Molly’s all the things, however all the operation–land, a part of the cattle herd and the farm retailer–was primarily based on rented land and infrastructure. As any younger farmer in that place is aware of, it could possibly all change instantly. And that’s precisely what occurred to Mike and Molly. Mike says, “All of our leases were ending and we were working hard to secure new land and keep things going. We were working with a realtor and when we couldn’t find the right land for our operation, we got creative and tried to connect to new farmland owners to offer our regenerative agriculture experience as a way for them to manage their new purchase.” In the tip, time ran out, and Mike and Molly hustled to search out new farms for his or her herd, reasonably than sending them to slaughter. Mike says, “After everything we had done, there was nothing left of it… No trace. And we’ve seen other farms come and go just like us. As a young farmer, there is so much stacked against you.”

But their story doesn’t finish there. Mike and Molly landed on their ft with their many expertise exterior of agriculture and their deep expertise inside it. Molly continued her pictures profession and Mike grew to become the Senior Livestock Director at Stone Barns Center, the famend regenerative farm and restaurant in New York. During that tumultuous 12 months of 2016, one of many nice issues to occur included the adoption of their first youngster Alden; they later welcomed their second son, Zavier.

“New York was interesting, but I knew it wasn’t going to be longterm,” Mike says. “I was gathering my thoughts about the next phase–what I wanted our family life to look like. At Stone Barns, I was working 70-80 hours a week, and that wasn’t sustainable. And we weren’t living on the farm, so the kids couldn’t be as involved.” Molly, who started homeschooling the boys, included agricultural studying into their curriculum as a lot as potential, however it wasn’t the identical because the dream they needed to increase their household on the farm.

Mike’s exploration throughout his three-plus years at Stone Barns led him to think about how he may have extra accountability for land administration, not simply livestock. “I wanted to have a sizable amount of land. I was confident in all I had learned and done and I wanted to scale those skills up and have more impact–not just on the herd, but on the land. So I started making calls.” Mike got here into dialog with Kinloch Farm, positioned in The Plains, Virginia, not removed from the roots of their first farm. Kinloch was seeking to rent somebody to handle its beef herd and gross sales. Mike didn’t instantly bounce on the alternative, as a result of he was envisioning one thing extra built-in and holistic. “We continued the conversation for six months, and over the course of that time, conditions changed that made my vision for more responsibility and oversight of land management possible at Kinloch.”

Today, Mike is the Farm and Conservation Director at Kinloch Farm, based greater than 200 years in the past in 1823. The farm was bought by the Currier household in 1960, with the third technology now concerned. The household and its employees are dedicated to regenerative agriculture and holistic well being for the farm, the household, the employees and the group. Kinloch Farm raises grassfed beef, honey and different regionally grown meals that they promote on to their group via their very own retail operation. Covering greater than 3,000 acres, the farm consists of protected and historic farmland in Virginia’s Piedmont that includes grasslands, savannas, riparian areas and wetlands. Kinloch’s grazing herd regenerates their land by enhancing soil microbiology, rising water retention, storing carbon and selling a variety of forage. As vital because the merchandise of the farm are the native species variety, wildlife and pollinator habitat, refuge and nesting floor for migratory grassland birds, well being and vitality of its waterways, and carbon sequestration. Kinloch Farm works with analysis companions that embrace The Piedmont Environmental Council, Virginia Outdoors Foundation, Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute, John Marshall Soil and Water Conservation District, and Virginia Working Landscapes.

Mike explains, “I oversee three main pillars of the farm: The farm and the beef, conservation and the retail operation. As director, my role is to make sure everyone has what they need. When I started, my first task was to change old policies and practices to get everything on the farm aligned with the commitment to grazing and conservation. I was also excited about the retail aspect because it involved establishing the brand and building the local market and support.”

As a part of their dedication to the holistic well being of the farm, the Currier Family is targeted on high quality of life for his or her employees. Staff obtain salaries and advantages, together with trip and entry to persevering with schooling. They require a 40-hour work week–nobody works greater than that. “Some would say they’re overstaffed, but I’ve been part of systems that do not take employee well-being into account. Farms cannot be sustainable if you do it that way.”

In addition to conservation, the Currier Family’s imaginative and prescient is for the farm to turn out to be extra of a group useful resource. With Mike’s expertise, they’re doing simply that. “The boys are nearly ten and seven now, and even if they don’t go to the farm with me every day, they’re in nature and Molly is able to take their school curriculum outside. Yesterday, they helped me sort calves and they’re raising their own flock of chickens,” says Mike. Molly provides, “I’m grateful for what the boys and I can do together: the chickens have been a huge thing for them, they’re both involved in learning how to cook, bake and garden, and we’ve raised monarchs. They’re so observant of the nature around us and they’re so mindful with livestock.”

In different phrases, they’re rising up similar to Mike and Molly dreamed after they first began their farm journey collectively.