Our Farm

Our History

Our history is deeply rooted in the Champoeg (sham-poo-ee) area. Our family settled here on the French Prairie in 1856 and once owned the ground that is now the site of Champoeg State Park. Along with operating a sawmill on Champoeg Creek and a bowling alley in the now extinct town-site, our great grandfather grazed turkeys in the oak grove for the holiday market, back when forest and pasture raising was the norm. Our family continues to farm adjacent to the park and in the surrounding Champoeg area.

We are deeply grateful to continue the farming tradition on our own small farm, focusing on pasture raised meats, and we can only hope our children will have the same opportunity in the future.

Oregon once produced 30% of the west coast supply of turkeys. In the 1970’s many were still being raised ‘free range’ in open fields.  By the late 80’s, turkey production was brought indoors, processing was being consolidated and a major recall occurred ending commercial turkey production in Oregon. We have seen the shift in agriculture towards ‘big ag’ and the loss of small family farms which affects consumer choices. We have made it our goal to do our part to bring sustainable, local turkey back to Oregon. Our roots go back a little farther however. The family farm was established in 1856. My great Grandmother would herd turkeys through the oak grove for acorns and all across the farm in the early 1900’s and would take them to Portland by ferry to be sold for Christmas money. That oak grove is now a part of Champoeg State Park but the rest of the farm and family is still here. Our little branch has been reviving this pasture poultry model for the last 16 years. Pasture Raised to us means birds living in open paddocks where they are moved frequently to fresh forage in a rotational model to yield the healthiest, most flavorful proteins possible. Raising poultry regeneratively presents many challenges and opportunities. Thus we are always improving upon Elfrieda’s methods. Over the years we have raised nearly every type of pasture protein; eggs, chicken, duck, rabbit, pork, beef and lamb in our rotational, multi-species model with our primary focus now being toward turkeys. In 2015 we expanded our operation to include on-farm processing which has allowed us to refine the method and really broaden our offerings.

Way of Life for Our People

Farming is a way of life for us. Not only does it support our family, it also sustains several valuable employees and young folks who work on our farm both year round and seasonally. One of our missions is to support and train diligent and capable people so they are able to thrive as employees or future entrepreneurs. While we value the pasture raised products that are produced on our farm, the real value is in the people who do the work and are supported by this way of life and by the good folk who buy from and support our farm.

Benefiting Others

We believe that when we have been given opportunities, these should be shared so our work can also benefit others. One benefit we strive to offer is to make local, pasture raised meat more accessible and affordable to all our neighbors in Oregon so they can enjoy clean, nutrient dense foods right in their neighborhoods.  Our regenerative methods help heal the soil  and not detract from it so it is a very sustainable form of protein and it produces meat that is not just more flavorable, but dense in nutrition and benefits the land.

Pasture Raised Bone Broth is a very healing food but it is expensive to find and purchase the real deal. We are giving it away to customers and asking them to share it with a neighbor who could use it.

Strong Partnerships

We also believe in strong partnerships with buyers. These commitments allow for stable growth for small business and farms both. We rely on each other and these strong ties. Grand Central Bakery was one of our first partnerships. They are a great example of a business that strives to Benefit Others as well and honor their commitments to providers and farmers.

Another relationship we have is with the AirBnB Cafe which is run by Bon Appetit Catering Co. When they were forced to shut down due to Covid-19, they wanted to continue buying and supporting their suppliers. They “purchased” a month’s worth of product and asked us to “pay it forward”. So therefore, we are matching their gift and giving away $3500 in Turkey Bone Broth to customers and neighbors in need.