Featured Business Members ~ March 2016

Provider Farm (Farmer's Pledge)
30 Woodbridge Road
Salem, CT 06420

(860) 222-5582

providerfarm.com

Provider Farm is located at the historic Woodbridge Farm property in Salem, Connecticut that dates back to the 1800's. Farmers Max and Kerry Taylor grow vegetables following OMRI organic standards on 14 beautiful acres of healthy, happy soil, and raise a herd of heritage cattle on 20 acres of biodynamically managed pasture. Their Devon cattle are a rare breed that does particularly well on grass-based farms, providing milk, meat, draft power and manure to fertilize the soil.

The farm offers a summer and winter CSA and has some wholesale accounts. Provider Farm is now recruiting full and part-time seasonal crew members and has opened CSA shares to new subscribers. Click here to apply for a farm job and here to apply for a CSA share, which can be picked up at the farm or at Terra Firma Farm in Stonington.

"Soil is our most precious resource and the foundation of our farm. Healthy soil makes a healthy farm. Soil is a complex living organism that needs to be fed and cared for like any other living thing. That is why at Provider Farm we don't use any chemical fertilizers or pesticides. We have a compost based fertility system and practice crop rotations and cover cropping to ensure that our soil remains healthy and strong." - Farmers Max and Kerry Taylor.

Viv's Vegetables at Chestnut Farm

227 Lyons Plains Road

Weston, CT

(203) 803-3728

viviansimons@mac.com

vivsveggies.com

Four years ago, Vivian Simons bought a historic, 14-acre property in Weston that was last farmed in the 1940s. The former onion field is now providing the local community with the freshest, organically-grown produce, herbs, flowers and ground fruit around. Children are always invited to go in the beautifully tended fields with a farm hand to pick from the 4 acres being cultivated, and guests can wander into the two pristine greenhouses that will soon be teeming with early lettuces, arugula and mustard greens.

Vivian likes to buy heirloom seeds to provide her customers with unique and rare varieties of vegetables including native ground cherries, Mexican sour gherkin cucumber, Szechuan buttons and heirloom tomatoes.The farm stand is bustling on market days in the spring - Saturdays and Sundays from 12-6 - with Friday and Wednesday added in full season. She doesn't offer a CSA yet or participate in farmers' markets, but will sell to wholesale account if they go to the farm to pick up.

Willimantic Food Coop

91 Valley Street Willimantic, CT 06226
(860) 456-3611
Open Monday - Saturday 9am - 8pm
Sunday 9am - 6pm

willimanticfood.coop/

Willimantic Food Coop has been member owned and operated since 1980, and the store is open to both members and non-members. Members pay shelf price and have the option of working at the store to receive an additional discount. Non-members pay 10% above shelf price. In addition to dollar savings, members get the benefit of fair prices, fine food, knowledgeable staff and the friendly environment that defines the co-op.

Willimantic Food Coop carries a full line of grocery items, produce, cheese, juices, grains, spices, vitamins, dairy products, meat and poultry, homeopathic remedies, and paper goods. Wayne's Organic Farm, Provider Farm (profiled above), High Hill Orchard, Tobacco Road Farm, Beltane Farm, and Farm to Hearth Bakery are among the local farms and artisan food producers that supply the co-op.