The G Farm

A few months ago I (Lindsay) was listening to a podcast about food issues in America. I’m a health nut so this is pretty normal for me. The podcast covered the topic of the meat industry and how corrupt it is. I’ll spare you the disturbing details but here are the highlights:

• Animals are severely mistreated or abused.
• Animals are fed improperly to make them grow faster.
• Animals are given antibiotics and other harmful additives.
• You are what you eat.

Think about that for a second. If the animal was given antibiotics, and you eat the animal, YOU just consumed the same antibiotics. I could write about this for days, but let’s not get carried away.

After more research, I found that what I had heard on the podcast was true. So I looked at my bag of frozen Tyson chicken breasts in the freezer that said “No antibiotics.” Seems legit, right? WRONG. Upon further investigation, I discovered that Tyson has been sued on numerous occasions for false advertising. They found a workaround so they could inject the eggs with antibiotics before they were hatched, allowing them to say the chickens were raised without antibiotics, and then just fail to mention the hatching process.

I was livid, and unfortunately, this is common.

This caused me to look into other options. I wanted to be able to TRUST the money I was spending on food was worth it. That’s how I found the G Farm. This farm is nothing like the industrial farms you will see in those documentaries. And the best part? They deliver their produce and meat directly to your door. So take off your boots cause we’re taking you out west to the G Farm. Yee. Haw.

The farm is located west of Appleton heading towards Stevens Point. It’s right off the US 10 highway on a frontage road. You’ve probably noticed it already if you’ve ever driven out that way. It looks likes a farm should look. Big red barns, a lush garden, livestock roaming about, and smiling dogs greeting you as you drive up. 

Once the dogs were pet (always mandatory for David), we made our way to a small shop alongside the barn. Inside, several freezers full of meat and a fridge for fresh eggs and produce for you to pick from. This is probably where you will meet the owners. It’s run by one of the friendliest couples ever. Friendly to humans and animals alike. Just listen to this comment from one of the chickens.

Farmer Justin and his wife Kim are hospitable, not just because it’s good for business. I can see genuine care in their conversations as they graciously showed us around their homestead. They took us from barn to pasture and back again. We left with a few pounds of ground beef, ground pork, eggs, arugula, and smiles.

Along the way, both Justin and Kim were very open and transparent. We asked tons of questions about all the chicks, pigs, rabbits, cows, and even the soon to be turkeys. We asked them about their processes, their suppliers, their butcher, their aspirations, and even pre-farm life. They gave us straight answers with no cow pies. 

Justin started this farm with the intention of treating the earth and animals correctly. From what we saw, they are accomplishing that mission. And we could tell you more about those things. Or you could just go ask them yourself. We highly encourage you to go to visit the farm, ask questions, and pet the dogs.

We have yet to sign up for their delivery yet. We had one last shipment from a national meat delivery box to get through before we switch over to the local. However, we did make tacos with our ground beef from our visit. It felt good to know we had walked on the same grass the cow did and we were supporting someone whose face we knew. It tasted pretty darn good as well, and we were even incredibly impressed with the arugula! There wasn’t a bad leaf in the whole bag and it tasted so much more fresh than what you’ll find at the store (and WAY better price)

If you want to learn more about the G Farm, check out this video. You get more information on their story and sign up for the delivery service on their website. Full-disclosure, we were not paid to say any of these kind words!  We just really like their mission and are grateful we have a place like this in the Fox Valley. More people need to know about it.

FAQ (all answers found on the G Farm website):

Is the G Farm non-GMO and organic?

January 2019: We have transitioned to a fully organic feed for our laying flock and will continue to use non-GMO, soy free organic feeds for all of our chickens grown in this coming year. The pork is going to be raised with feed milled on the farm and will not be all be GMO-free, however, it has not been sprayed with any herbicides or pesticides. The peas and oats in their feed are but the corn is raised locally by my dad and he has not made that transition yet. I am working with a new farmer that will meet my needs for the 2020 growing season. The turkey will be raised with the same organic feeds as our chickens this season and as always our beef is grass fed from start to finish.

Are hormones and antibiotics used on the animals?

January 2019: We do not use hormones or antibiotics on our animals. Our holistic approach includes adding apple cider vinegar to our livestock water on a bi-weekly basis and a monthly addition of Shaklee Basic H. We believe that the animal’s natural diets improve the lifestyle of our animals. Cows only eat grass keeping their gut bacterias balanced. Chickens are free range and have access to grasses and bugs. Pigs are on pasture and are rotated regularly to keep their living conditions green. These practices have kept our herds and flocks healthy. Overall, our animals do grow slower than some on more conventional farms. Our prices reflect the efforts we put into our healthy products. We believe that the end product is higher in nutritional value and that your taste buds will recognize the quality.

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