Enjoy Local Produce From Wisconsin Farms

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(Photos: by Belleville Chamber of Commerce)

Yes, You Can Buy From Local Farms In The Winter Months

As stores, restaurants, places of worship continue adjusting to help us all stay safer and reduce the spread of the COVID-19 Delta and Omnicron variants, some creative people have invented new business models to help us all cope and support others in the process.

Many of the glimmering transformations of creativity have happened right here in southern Wisconsin. Hopefully by now many of you know of 8 year old, Morgan Marsh-McGlone of Belleville raising over $53,000 to help a pay-as-you-can restaurant in Madison get off the ground. And there are so many others from retired nurses making masks for front line workers, and local performers raising money online to help their fellow artists. This sense of giving and community spirit has reached local farms in a big way. Small, mom and pop businesses, our Wisconsin farmers, are finding the generous heart and mantra of "buy local" lifting them from closure.

"We've been unbelievably busy since March 15th due to COVID-19 outbreaks at large, meat packing plants and grocery store shortages of beef," says Kevin Oppermann, owner of Highland Spring Farm in Oregon, Wisconsin. Oppermann since the early months of the pandemic has seen a steady increase of families coming to his farm to buy his beef products in bulk to stock up for the months to come. And his farm like others in southern Wisconsin had to also adjust to the closures of area farmer's markets most notably the Dane County Farmer's Market. As the virus raged on in 2020 the downtown Madison market like others in the region changed their operations to first accommodate pick-up only of produce and then to a very scaled back, spread out version or their original configuration on Madison's Capitol Square. So many Wisconsinites relied on farmer's markets for a fresher, locally sourced alternative to the big box, grocery stores. Farmers relied on markets too many for a large part of their seasonal income.

But creatives in the farming community saw from the constraints of COVID-19 a more community based business approach to lift all in their fields. One shining example, is Madison Farmers Unite a group of like-minded, farmers that wanted to keep money circulating locally and support their friends' farms. Customers make purchases of locally produced or grown products through the groups' website.

This cooperative spirit born from COVID-19 worked seamlessly with the expansion of online shopping to all sectors of the economy. Little by little, many area farms have developed similar, online platforms that allow their customers to purchase their products and then from the comfort and safety of their car pickup their items at the farm. In addition to beef, Highland Spring Farm also sells chicken and pork from local, area farms. It's that partnership of small farms that makes this new, cooperative business model sustainable and durable against online retailers like Walmart, or Amazon.

Many Americans are still a bit nervous about going in to a large grocery store and spend more than fifteen minutes (check the CDC's indoor guidelines for COVID-19 exposure) to find everything we need and want. Buying online from a local farm allows you to avoid the big store as well. True many big, grocery stores now offer "Curbside Pickup" but that is never a guarantee that you will have the freshest produce and meat when it arrives by bag in your car's trunk. There are even stories of customers unpacking their groceries at home only to find rotten onions, bananas or tomatoes in the bag.

Thankfully, even in the depths of winter you can still buy fresh produce and meat online from southern Wisconsin farms from the depths of your sofa right now. Riemer Family Farms like Highland Spring Farm, Vitruvian Farms, Rich Beat Farms, Mandt Honey Works and Pleasant Spring Orchard (if you call ahead) all offer the convenience of ordering ahead and contact less, pick-up from their farms. And can you think of a better reason to get some fresh air, shake off the cabin fever, and support our local farmers then a drive through the beautiful, snowy Wisconsin countryside on your way to get a gallon of apple cider, microgreens, fresh spinach, or pound of beef shank from an area farmer. They will thank you for it and you will be helping us all get through this pandemic and strengthen community bonds.

SHOP NOW

Highland Spring Farm

For sale: Chicken, beef and pork

Shop here: https://www.highlandspringfarm.com/products

Pick-up: 2586 Lalor Road, Oregon, WI 53575

Phone: 414-659-2676

Mandt Honey Works LLC

For Sale: Honey and honey products

Shop here: https://mandt-honey-works-llc.square.site/#WIXcAf

Pick-up: 953 Taylor Lane, Stoughton, Wisconsin 53589

Phone: 608-225-5761

Email: mandthoneyworks@gmail.com