Local growers specialize in thoughtful and creative crops By Brighid Driscoll An old saying instructs us to make friends with a doctor, lawyer, and bartender, as an ally in each profession can provide a solution for most of life’s problems: medicine for our ailments, counsel in tough times, and a drink when the other two don’t work. What the saying forgets to advise is that making friends with a farmer is beneficial three times a day, 365 days a year. We don’t break bread, nourish our bodies, or sustain the economy without farmers. If you agree—you agree, don’t you?—then Northern Express has a few cool NoMi farms worth checking out.
Hometown Sweetheart: Hilbert’s Honey News alert: We’re headed into pollen season, and word on the street is that local raw honey can help relieve seasonal allergies. “I give a spoonful to my three-year-old every day, and I haven’t had to give him allergy medicine yet,” says Jordan Ritter, sales and marketing manager at Hilbert’s Honey of Traverse City, Currently owned by Larry and Geana Hilbert, the Hilbert family farm has been making honey in northern Michigan since the late 1800s. “In the early days they sold their honey out of their garage. People would travel from all over the country to buy drums of honey,” Ritter explains. The fourth-generation farm has come a long way since its start, ramping up to a true commercial enterprise. Ritter says, “We were selling it unlabeled for the longest time. We still sell it commercially, but now we sell it ourselves and want to make sure we’re keeping our local community supplied.” So, how does the honey get made? The Hilbert bees are moved throughout the country depending on the season, and the taste of the honey they produce fluctuates with the areas they’re pollinating. “We take them to our facility in Labelle, Florida, during the winter and they pollinate a ton of stuff down there,” Ritter says. “They love citrus, so we’ll have orange blossom honey that’s really good.” During their time in Michigan, the bees pollinate cherry, apple, and other fruit orchards on the peninsulas, as well as wildflower meadows. Hibert’s offers a variety of honey products, including (raw) cream honey, bee balm, maple syrup, and more. A particularly sought-after product of theirs is honeycomb, which isn’t just edible but rich in health benefits with antioxidants and antimicrobial properties. From soothing coughs to softening skin, Hilbert’s Honey is versatile, but there’s no doubt the best way to enjoy some is with biscuits and tea. Or by the spoonful…you know, for your allergies (whether or not you have them). Find their products at their storefront in Traverse City, or at Oleson’s, Tom’s, Oryana, and Village Market.
Certified Fresh Tomatoes: Third Day Farm On any given afternoon at Third Day Farm in Lake City, you can find volunteers digging, planting, and pruning around the farm. “We’re trying to build something community minded,” says co-owner Bob Gothard. “Our volunteers have tremendously blessed us.” Before it was Third Day, the land was the Raden Farm and it’s where Bob’s wife Anne and her seven siblings grew up. The farm produced everything from livestock to veggies (including the tomatoes we’ll talk about in a moment), and her parents’ conventional farming methods fed the family well—along with foster kids, friends, and extended family. When Anne and Bob began farming the land, they were using the systems that had worked for her parents. “Our vet bill was running $2,000 a year,” Bob said. “So I started looking into non-GMO.” He found making small changes to their farming practices led to big outcomes. After converting their livestock’s diets to completely non-GMO feed, he noticed that he didn’t need to take any of the animals to the vet. “Our vet bill for the past nine or so years has been $0.” The same approach was applied to their produce. The Gothards learned about soil microbiology, went pesticide free, and made sure none of their crops were genetically modified, synthetically flavored, or anything other than real, clean food. Volunteers on the farm are rewarded with the (literal) fruits of their labor, on the farm which is one of the Gothards’ favorite ways to do business. “We barter for what we can’t grow ourselves,” Bob says. “We have an Amish family in Harrison. They grow the best sweet potatoes in the world. They don’t use chemicals—none of that crap. And so we trade apples with them, things like that.” Their heirloom tomato varieties, in particular, are locally loved and anticipated all year. “There’s over 1,000 different kinds of heirloom tomatoes. We grow 15 varieties, and also grow our very own two. One’s named after my wife and called Annie’s Almond,” Bob tells us. Multiple greenhouses on the farm are dedicated to their tomatoes, and the red veggies—or are they fruit?—will be coming into season in late summer. Mark your calendars, as these delicious treats go fast. Visit Third Day at their Lake City farm store (3234 S La Chance Rd.) currently open Tuesday through Saturday 10am to 5pm.
Photo courtesy of Liana May
16 • may 09, 2022 • Northern Express Weekly
They’ve Got the Meats: Anavery Fine Foods “Happy animals taste better,” says Adam Weinrich of Anavery Fine Foods, who owns a 78-acre farm in Traverse City with wife Dandan Zhu and their three children. The Weinrich Farm—which focuses on pork, lamb, beef, chicken, and turkey—employs regenerative farming practices and ethical treatment of animals. According to Weinrich, regenerative farming has tons of benefits, including improving water and air quality, boosting biodiversity, mitigating climate change, and producing more nutrient dense food. Before they were farmers, Weinrich and Zhu held corporate office jobs. In 2019 they were ready for a change of pace, and they purchased the land they would farm and quickly got to work. They knew going into it that they wanted their livestock’s happiness to be of the topmost importance. “We raise them in an ethical way that lets them enjoy a good quality of life,” Weinrich explains. “We do rotational grazing so they’re getting fresh grass all of the time. It’s better for them and better for the land. We took the first year slowly—bought one cow, five sheep, [and] one pig— and began to see if this was what we wanted to do. We enjoyed it and are now in our third year.” If this is the first time you’re hearing of Anavery, don’t be surprised. The farm doesn’t advertise much because they don’t need to. Anavery’s fan favorite is a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) program called the Meat Club. Each subscription period gives customers a share every two weeks for four months. The Meat Club is similar to the more common vegetable CSAs in that the food is fresh and local; however, in this case, customers get to choose what they’d like in their bi-weekly box including eggs, meat, and poultry. Subscriptions run three times a year starting in January, May, and October. Anavery's May-September CSA just closed, but fret not—you can find their fine foods in both Oryana locations in TC.
