On June 9, we made the trip to Swoope, Virginia to visit Polyface Farm. We were ‘introduced’ to Joel Salatin and Polyface several years ago and since then have read several of Joel’s books and watched several videos and documentaries about what the Salatin’s are doing at Polyface.
We have been wanting to go for a few years now and finally just bought tickets for a Lunatic Tour and decided to make it happen.
We brought both boys and John David’s dad on the tour. John David’s dad has a small beef cattle operation and we wanted him to join us!
We had an idea of what the farm was like and were familiar with the way they managed their animals but we just wanted to see it for ourselves.
Here’s the barn where they feed cattle for the winter. Joel is describing the way they feed their beef cattle and the value of the manure to the fertility of the farm.
I was most excited about seeing the egg mobile first hand. Here’s a glimpse inside the Polyface Egg Mobile and several of Polyface’s happy and healthy hens.
One of the things we love about the Salatin’s operation is that they are thrifty. They don’t have the newest, shiniest, latest and greatest things for their farm. They are very practical and frugal because it helps make a farm profitable.
Some of the Salad Bar Beef at Polyface.
Paxton purchased a Polyface Coloring Book with his own money and was excited to have Joel sign it for him!
The boys with Joel. Weston was more excited than his expression would lead you to believe.
We were excited to be able to meet Joel. He is an amazing communicator and educator, an inspiration to so many and is so kind to the people who visit his farm.
The boys are already talking about taking another trip to Polyface one day so Cecilia and Laura can see the operation first hand. I love that they want their sisters to visit Polyface too.
We left the visit inspired. While our little homestead cannot be compared to an operation like Polyface, we realize that there is so much potential on our 5 acres. We just have to dream, plan and do the work!
We’re so thankful for pioneers in sustainable agriculture like Joel Salatin.
—Rachel
“I’m a Christian-libertarian-environmentalist-capitalist-lunatic. It’s a humorous way for me to describe that I’m not stereotypical.” – Joel Salatin
“The shorter the chain between raw food and fork, the fresher it is and the more transparent the system is.” – Joel Salatin
“Amazingly, we’ve become a culture that considers Twinkies, Cocoa Puffs, and Mountain Dew safe, but raw milk and compost-grown tomatoes unsafe.” –Joel Salatin
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