This year, we're excited by the opportunity to partner with Winter Green Farm on grass-fed beef. Since expanding our vegetable fields, we opted against raising cows on our Sherwood farm because we felt there wasn't adequate room for the cows to graze and the vegetables to grow. Instead, we initiated our first regional producer relationship with Winter Green Farm and will be offering their beef shares this summer.

About cattle from Winter Green Farm

Winter Green Farm is kindly raising five cows on its Noti farm for Our Table customers this summer. The five Black Angus cows, with a bit of Gelbvieh variety mixed in, came from a closed herd that is 100% grass-fed. During their stay at Winter Green Farm, the cows will feast on lush, Organic grasses, specifically white clover and perennial rye. This spring, they will be on a three-day rotation between the farm's pastures in order to facilitate better grass regrowth.

In early July, the Our Table cows will be harvested on-farm at Winter Green Farm by 4-Star Meat Co. This early season harvest means that the pasture is still growing and the nutritional content of the pasture (and therefore the meat) is at its zenith.

The cows will never be given any growth hormones or antibiotics, and will maintain a 100% grass-fed diet of Organically grown grasses, legumes and herbs. As Winter Green Farm says, "Feeding cattle solely grass and no grain is not only much better for the health of the earth, but it also creates much healthier meat for us to eat". At Our Table, we couldn't agree more.

Behind Winter Green Farm

The Winter Green Farm story begins back in 1980 when Jack Gray and Mary Jo Wade purchased the farm. Since this time, two more families, Wali and Jabrila Via and Chris and Shannon Overbaugh, have joined in the ownership. Now totaling 170 owned and leased acres, the families run a diverse operation that includes vegetables, berries, grass-fed beef and even a pesto business. While the farm is Certified Organic, Winter Green Farm takes its farming practices one step further by adhering to Biodynamic methods, meaning the farm is cared for as its own closed-looped ecosystem with fertility being produced and recycled on-farm. Winter Green Farm's operation and food stems from its mission to cultivate harmony with the earth, humanity and ourselves.

We invite you to read more about the story and values of Winter Green Farm. Additionally, check out a few images from the farm below.

Our Table Cooperative