Eating local has plenty of benefits – the food is often healthier and you’re supporting Wisconsin farmers – but finding local, farm-grown food grown often doesn’t seem as easy as taking a trip to the grocery store. Smaller farms across Wisconsin are trying to change that perception.
According to a 2022 census of Wisconsin agriculture from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, there has been a growth in smaller farms targeting local markets across the state. Unlike Wisconsin’s large commercial farms, these businesses rely directly on sales from customers in their communities.
Many of these farms offer Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) programs, while others can be found at farmers markets and in restaurants around the Milwaukee area. CSA’s offer customers a monthly subscription fee in exchange for a share of the farm’s harvest. The subscription payments help the farm pay for the seeds, supplies and labor. CSA programs provide a mutually beneficial relationship between the farm and the customer, and they are a primary profit source for many of Wisconsin’s small farms.
Every farm has its own unique story, along with its own approach to small-scale production. Milwaukee Magazine talked to three small-scale certified organic farms from southeastern and central Wisconsin. While each farmer shared a different story with us, their message remained the same: eating local, organic food isn’t just good for your health; it’s good for your community.
ALDEN HILLS | WALWORTH
Alden Hills is a family-owned certified organic farm that grows grass-fed pork, beef, chicken and Thanksgiving turkeys.
When farm manager Levi Powers was in high school, his parents started Alden Hills as a hobby farm. Coming from several generations of business owners, Levi was inspired to turn Alden Hills into a business after graduating college. Today, Powers manages the farm alongside his wife, Emily.
Alden Hills’ farming practices are centered around using organic techniques and raising on pasture in tandem, which Powers creates a clean food chain and the highest-quality product.
According to Powers, one of the biggest reasons why eating locally is challenging is because locally-sourced products aren’t accessible for everyone. “We understand that there is not an easy way to eat locally and support your farms. So, if there’s anything we can do to bridge that gap, that’s where we need to be all in,” Powers says.
Alden Hills’ solution is to bring their meat right to your front door. “[Shipping] is the most convenient thing that we can do for people because a lot of people don’t have time to go out to the farmers market once a week,” Powers says.
Alden Hills sells all of their meat products online and offers 1-day delivery to customers in the Madison, Milwaukee and Chicago areas.
GWENYN HILL | WAUKESHA
Gwenyn Hill is a 430-acre farm that grows certified organic produce and raises grass-fed lamb, cattle and poultry. The farm’s philosophy is that animals should be brought to their food, not the other way around. That’s why most of the land is used to produce food for the livestock, while a smaller portion is used for crop production.
Perennial plants on the pastureland develop deep roots that keep soil in place and prevent erosion. As the animals graze and fertilize the soil, the plants strengthen and send down deeper root systems.
“We do so thinking about the entire ecosystem and thinking of how every single little input and everything we do would affect everything beneath it. It’s a monumental challenge, but it’s a challenge that’s absolutely worthy of the cause,” says Brian Randall, the farm manager.
Gwenyn Hill has a 280-member CSA. But unlike most farms, which ship their harvest to customers, Gwenyn Hill’s CSA members take a trip to the farm each week to pick up their portion. Gwenyn Hill opens the farm to the public on Tuesdays and Thursdays. The farm has a ‘U-Pick’ area where CSA members pick their own produce to bring home.
“The goal was to bring the community in and build the kinds of relationships where we can bring people closer to the food they’re eating,” Randall says.
Along with their CSA, Gwenyn Hill has an on-site farmstand open during the week to the public. Gwenyn Hill can also be found at the Brookfield Farmers Market, Stone Bank Market in Oconomowoc and Good Harvest Market in Pewaukee. The farm works closely to provide local, organic meat and produce to Story Hill BKC and Uncle Wolfie’s Breakfast Tavern.
OLDEN ORGANICS | RIPON
Tracy and Richard Vinz own Olden Organics, a certified organic farm that grows a wide selection of vegetables.
Stacey’s father managed the Green Bay Farmers Market for over 30 years. As a child, she spent her afternoons as a self-proclaimed “market rat,” helping vendors sell their produce. She left a corporate job 20 years ago when Richard acquired his grandparents’ farm, and the two have been running Olden Organics ever since.
Olden Organics specializes in spiral vegetable noodles and produces 26 different fresh-cut vegetable products in their processing plant located on the farm. In 2023, it provided locally-grown fresh-cut produce to 93 school districts across Wisconsin.
“We want to feed our community good, wholesome food,” Vinz said.
You can find Olden Organics at the Oshkosh and Dane County Farmers Market, along with the Stone Bank Market in Oconomowoc and The Free Market in Appleton. Its products can also be found at Outpost Natural Foods in Milwaukee, Willy’s Street Co-Ops in Madison, Health Hut in Pewaukee and the Oshkosh Food Co-Op, and the farm supplies vegetables to Farmers Best for their CSA program.
Alden Hills, Gwenyn Hill and Olden Organics are only a few of the many small farms in Wisconsin. Here are some others to check out:
CATTAIL ORGANICS | ATHENS
This organic family farm grows vegetables, herbs and makes maple syrup. You can find Cattail produce at the Wausau farmers market and in several restaurants near Wausau. You can join Cattail Organics’ CSA, buy wholesale produce or shop online here.
HAPPY DAY FARMHAUS | GERMANTOWN
This certified organic farm grows produce and flowers and can be found through October at the Wauwatosa farmers market. They also offer a CSA with weekly pickup sites in Germantown, Oconomowoc, Brookfield, Wauwatosa and Milwaukee.
SPROUTING ACRES | CAMBRIDGE
About a half hour from Madison, Sprouting Acres sells at Stoughton and Dane County farmers markets. The farm also hosts events, most notably pizza nights, serving pizza wood-fired in the farm’s outdoor clay ovens. Sprouting Acres also offers cooking classes, kids nights on the farm, and farm dinners.
TURTLE CREEK GARDENS | DELAVAN
This certified organic farm sells organic vegetables, hemp products and honey, along with pasture-raised pork and beef.
This farm provides produce to La Merenda in Milwaukee and Harvest Vine & Cafe in Pewaukee. It can also be found at the Shorewood Farmers Market in the summer. You can join Turtle Creek Garden’s CSA here.
WINTERSPRING FARM | WEST BEND
Winterspring Farm uses certified organic farming practices to grow the clean vegetables and herbs. Their CSA is currently full, but you can purchase seedlings from their farm here.
Winterspring Farm can also be found at different farmers markets year-round in Port Washington, Fox Point and West Bend.
