I may as well start from the beginning.  My wife Alyson and I were married in 2001, and we had the reception on my parents’ farm.  At the time Alyson and I were photographed on the side of a hill looking into the valley.  It is a beautiful photo but what people don’t know is that while posing for the photo Alyson told me that she will never, ever, EVER  live on the farm. 

Fast forward to 2006.  We had 2 daughters and a son on the way.  Alyson and I decided that we needed more space, and I was considering a career change.  One of the original McNish homesteads adjacent to the farm came up for sale, and we drove by during an open house.  Alyson and I decided to take a look at the house for fun, and the moment Alyson walked through the kitchen door she fell in love with it, giving me a chance to move home…. so we bought it and moved in 2 weeks after the birth of our first son in 2007.

We lived for almost a year in the homestead happy to be closer to family, and adjusting to country life.  Living in a 150year old home had its charms, and while embracing the country life, Alyson acquired a fascination with all things ‘Anne of Green Gables’.

I was thrilled to be able to help my Dad on the farm while maintaining an outside career, and Alyson was having fun learning about how things used to be. We started comparing life then to now, did not like what we were seeing, but felt helpless.

I have always felt a responsibility to take over my parent’s farm, as I am my parent’s only son. I figured sooner or later I would accept my role, but because my father and Uncle were still running the farm and I was content with my own life, I had absolutely no intentions of farming any time soon.  I figured that one day I would inherit the farm and it would be more of a hobby farm for me.

I believe in the Lord Almighty, and I believe wholeheartedly that early one morning in March 2008, God set forth in motion a plan that would alter the course of my life.

The dairy barn, and all the things necessary to run it were on fire.

That day my father lost his main source of income.   He lost his barn, his milking equipment and all of his livestock.  The only animal that he was able to save was the family dog that slept in the barn at night.

Now, my father and mother have endured many things during their 35 years of milking cows, and as much as they could rebuild, they knew there was no point in rebuilding the farm as a dairy knowing I was never going to milk.  So as strong as I know they are I started to feel an urgency in my heart about the future and where my family and I fit into the farm.

Late that year, my father decided to purchase a small herd of 15 bred commercial cows, cash crop and continue to fix equipment.  I encouraged him to do what he wanted, to enjoy life, and  I would help him when I could.

Alyson had researched and purchased her own flock of chickens for eggs and meat, and I began to learn more about the beef industry. We were enjoying raising our own products and having our own little ‘hobby farm’.   One evening however, our interest in farming for a living ignited when my wife and I sat down and watched the movie FOOD INC.

Alyson has an extensive background in fitness and nutrition, and we are both former athletes so we have a pretty good idea about eating for optimal health.  However, watching the farmer Joel Salatin explain his natural farming practices and how he makes a living farming the natural way, caught our attention. We already knew that most of the food found in the grocery stores is the reason behind the disease epidemic in North America, but until that day we did not think there was much we could do about it.

We became immersed in learning about  natural and whole foods, and worked on eliminating processed food from our diet. For an entire year we worked on eating as close to natural food as possible, and saw great results.  We read books, checked out videos, and learned as much about our food system as we could.  We did it for selfish reasons. We wanted to start raising our own chicken, eggs, beef and products free of hormones and other chemicals.

We soon acquired more hens, and began selling the extra eggs at the end of our driveway. We very quickly realized there were more people like us out there. Real people that want to consume real, wholesome food.  There are people like us who are sick of being lied to, sick of not being educated about the products sold to us, and are searching for solutions.

At first we were content selling our products to friends and family to offset our own costs, but our vision began to change.

Our vision is now much bigger. We believe that the public has a right to good quality food that is healthy and ethically raised. We also believe that farmers deserve to make a decent living for the hard work they put in to it.  Supermarket food is controlled by big industry, and so for now we are working on farmer direct sales; “ From our farm, to your plate”.   We know that it is impossible to feed a city with our little farm, but we do believe that we can do our best with the land we have, and help educate other consumers and other farmers to do the same.

In 2011, after realizing our new passion for farming, my Dad gave me full reign of the cattle. He initially started the beef herd at my urging to supplement his income. He has realized that if we are to one day be 6^th generation on the farm, that he must allow us to make a go of it OUR way.  He handed over the reigns so to speak.   For now we are in charge of the animal end of things.  I still have a full time job elsewhere but I believe that in ten years, I will be able to farm full time and provide for my family.  I want my parents to know that we are here to stay and our desire is to carry this farm into the future.

Since my father and Uncle still actively farm the land, and our cattle are only tenants on that land, Alyson and I decided to call our part of the business Elm Valley Farm. We don’t want to take away from what my father is doing; we only want to add to it.

Our future plans are vast but we are content with taking one step at a time.

We know that our vision may seem crazy to some, and perhaps it is.  We are in a time when the family farm cannot sustain itself.  What we are doing may seem against the grain because it is.  We may be a little crazy but we do believe in what we are doing. We also believe that if the public were educated about the food they are consuming they will begin to demand a different choice. We see that already with the number of organic products now available to consumers, but it needs to go further than that.  There is a HUGE difference between our products and supermarket fare.   The information is out there and we encourage you to look for it.

We hope our site helps you to begin to sort through some of the basics, and that we can help you begin or continue your journey of health.

Thank you for taking the time to read our story. If you have met us you know that we will talk your ear off, but that is just because we are passionate people. We don’t pretend to know everything there is to know, and we will admit that we are always learning, and always growing.  We don’t know what our future holds as that is in the Lord’s hands.  What we do know is that with your support our dream of feeding you superior quality products for optimal health at a reasonable cost for both you and the farmer can be realized.