Stone Coop Farm is a certified organic farm in Brighton, Michigan. We specialize in mixed vegetables and fruits with many heirloom varieties. We have a CSA membership and sell at farmers market and wholesale. Our farm is active in the community, donating produce for Gleaners Community Food Bank and supporting local efforts to increase awareness of the importance of eating locally and organically. We strive for sustainability in our farming practices, maintaining a vibrant ecosystem of mixed annuals and perennials with cover crop and animal rotations to foster the development of healthy soil and an environment for beneficial insects. We love to give farm tours, so if you would like to see the farm, please call to schedule a visit.
To get started learning more about the farm and how you can become an active member, visit any of the following links:
I have always loved the outdoors, backpacking, sailing, skiing, hiking, gardening and walking. Just seeing a tree in the middle of a field or smelling a hyacinth when it first blooms reminds me of how amazing this world can be.After 21 years working for the insurance industry I was laid off in early 2009. It was the best thing that could have happened. During that summer I coordinated a small community garden project for Gleaners Community Food Bank with my church. To our utter astonishment we were able to deliver 2150 lbs of produce between July and early October. It was the most fulfilling summer of my life. I had found my calling.
In order to pursue my new passion I attended Michigan State's Organic Farmer Training Program and completed it in November 2010. It was an incredible program! I worked on their 10-acre farm every day for 9 months. I learned all aspects of organic farming including organic pest management, crop management, and growing for wholesale, farmers market and CSA distribution. I also managed a hoop house (passive solar greenhouse) that allows you to grow fresh produce all year round, even in Michigan! At the same time we focused on farming as a business venture and visited over 20 other farms in Michigan. It gave me the hands on experience I needed to start my own farm.
In 2009 I met Shannon Rau via email. We shared our passion for organic farming and in 2010 when Shannon graduated she helped me with the Gleaner's community garden project. It was a great partnership! In November 2010, with generous support from Shannon's father and encouragement from our family and friends, we started our own farm, Stone Coop Farm LLC!
I am excited about owning a farm and providing healthy, tasty, and unique varieties of fresh produce. I am also excited about building a community at the farm centered around enjoying good food, taking care of this earth and living a healthy life.
Shannon Rau (co-owner)
Pacific University has a small organic farm, The B St Permaculture Project, where I worked the two summers that I stayed in Forest Grove. During my time there, I discovered how much I enjoyed farming. Not only could I spend my day doing work outside—something I have always loved—but I could also be part of the developing local food culture that was important in sustaining the vibrance of the community. And, as I continued to live and work in Oregon, I came to realize that creating a sustainable, local food system is vital to the health and survival of the very land which sustains us. I returned home to Michigan with this notion after graduating in May 2010 with a degree in Biology with an emphasis in Ecology and Evolution, and tried to determine what I could do to foster the development of such a food system in my hometown. Thankfully, an opportunity beyond what I thought was possible very quickly arose.
Back in the fall of 2009 while I was still in school, a friend sent me a link to an article in the Livingston Daily about several people in Brighton who were growing food for Gleaner's. I emailed one of the people involved and was soon in contact with Joannée about the work she was doing. After I graduated and returned home, I jumped on the opportunity to get involved with her endeavor. We quickly realized that we shared many of the same passions for providing healthful food to the community that we lived in. While on a run with my Dad, I mentioned what Joannée was doing and how both of us had a desire to start a farm. He ran with the idea and soon proposed the idea of helping us start up our own organic farm. The rest is history!
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