Blog - Joe’s Farm

Anticipating the New Season

It is MARCH and we are feeling like Spring here at Joe's Farm. There is nothing quite like the anticipation of a new season. The weather is starting to warm (a few days more than normal) and we are getting ready to welcome our new baby chicks very soon. We are starting to see the end of the lists we made in the Fall. Hours spent on calendars and schedules. Days spent thinking through plans that will all soon become a reality. There is excitement in the air on the Farm! Over the past week, one very large development has been under construction. Last year, our farm expanded to include a new pasture. It is located right next to one of our farm properties. With this additional land, we are able to expand our production capabilities. This year, we plan to produce over TWICE as many broilers as we produced in 2023! This means, more infrastructure as well. Below, you will see photos from last week where we had NINE new coops assembled! Although, this is all very exciting for those here on Joe's Farm, this is really even more exciting to us because this means the demand for pasture-raised chicken is GROWING! So many farmers we talk to have said they can't keep up with the demand. This is AMAZING! People are asking questions and doing research. They are shopping local and buying from farms they trust! We are just one of many farms working to bring ethically raised meats to market. We are grateful you are here. Every week, we are getting more and more questions through our social media and website asking about our practices. This is such an encouragement to us! It shows how much you care. We have reflected on a lot of things this week, with growth comes some fears about the unknowns. We are so excited to embrace whatever challenges lie ahead, but you can be confident that even as we grow, our principles and values will not change. We are committed to maintaining our high standards whether we raise 100 chickens or 100,000. We know there are a lot of new names on our email list and social media accounts. First, we want to say thank you! Welcome! We would also like to share a few things that we feel are fundamental to us here at Joe's Farm. One example would be the length of time our chicks are on pasture. While baby chicks need the protection of a brooder barn at first, they are not meant to stay in a barn. Our protocol is to have our birds on pasture for over 50% of their lives. All of our broilers are moved to pasture when they are 3 weeks old. Another important part of our process in raising broilers, is the feed they eat. We have both non-GMO feed for our broilers and corn-free soy-free Organic. Another part of our process is DAILY movement! Each coop is hooked up to our tractor and moved until there is fresh grass under the entire coop. This gives them not only feed and water, but fresh vegetation, worms, and bugs along with sunlight and fresh air. Members of our team walk along while we move the coops helping the birds move along and looking for any potential issues. These are just a few examples of what care goes into the food we bring to your table. If you want to follow along with us this season, make sure to check out our Facebook and Instagram links. We will also share here on our Farm Newsletter. In closing, we want to share just how grateful we are to each one of you. The support shown by not only our amazing local community, but also all over the country. It is so incredible and humbling to be able spend our days caring for the land and the animals who use it. ~ The Joe’s Farm Team

We are Shipping Again

We are SHIPPING AGAIN!!Our Pasture-Raised Meats….Shipped to Your DoorLast summer, we made the difficult decision to pause our shipping program. Our Farm Store was growing rapidly (HUGE shout out to our amazing and supportive local community) and I (Danielle) was still getting myself settled into my new role here on Joe’s Farm. Now that we have gotten our systems in place and some new strategies (and training) under our belts, we are so excited to be relaunching our SHIPPING PROGRAM again! We want to say a HUGE thank you to everyone who has waited so patiently for us to begin shipping again. Some of you have been ordering from Joe since he first started offering shipping a couple years ago. We are grateful for your support and look forward to bringing you our pasture-raised meats once again. Quick details:We are finishing up making sure our inventory is accurate. Once everything is ready, our products will show up again on our website. Our first shipping day will be February 19th, 2024 (with orders closing the before Sunday at 11:59pm)If you are new to our farm, follow the “click to shop” button below and you can see if your zip code is in our shipping radius. If you haven’t already, you can also sign up and make an account through our website. We are running low on some of our products. If you don’t see something you are looking for, feel free to send us an email and we can add you to our “restock alert” email list! COMING SOON:During our shipping break, we were able to spend some time coming up with new ideas for how to streamline our processes for ourselves as well as our customers. One of those ways is through a new program; Joe’s Farm Club subscription boxes! While we will still offer our ala carte shopping option, we are excited to be able to send our carefully curated farm boxes to your door with just the click of a button! No more needing to remember to place an order, we will take down your preferences and have a box ready to go for you every month! We also will offer our Joe’s Farm Club members early access to new products as well as knowing you will get all the premium cuts even when our stock runs low. For more details on our subscription boxes, keep reading below! Again, thank you to our customers (both local and all over the country), for your continued support. Here at Joe’s Farm, we love getting to help bring our quality meats to your family table. ~~~~ Danielle

Farm Store

Our farm store just got a major restock! Grilling season is right around the corner and we have a variety of cuts available. Our featured steaks include porterhouse, sizzlers, t-bone and delmonicos. We also have our summer sausages and snacking sticks. An exciting change is happening in our farm store. We will soon be accepting credit cards through a self service point of sale system! We currently accept Venmo, cash and check but we know that sometimes a credit card is a more convenient option. Make sure to watch for a future email (as well as on our social media) for information but it should be ready to use by this weekend! We hope this makes our shopping experience even better for our local customers!

New Life at the Farm

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March has always been one of our favorite months and this year was even better. In addition to over 7000 new baby chicks, we added a little farmer to our family. William (Liam) Wayne was born March 6th. Big brother, Rowan, has had his hands full helping with baby brother and welcoming all the new baby chicks. Springtime DreamingSpring is such an exciting time in the life of a farmer. While it might be a little premature to declare it spring here in SW MI, the new life arriving has made us feel like it is here. Welcoming our new fuzzy friends officially kicks off our 2023 season. We are so grateful to our customers and can't wait to start caring for these animals in the best way possible for their health and yours. We have lots of exciting things coming this year here at Joe's Farm and we can't wait to start sharing more over the next few weeks. Until then, make sure to follow our social media for lots of adorable baby chick content. These little birds are so much fun to watch grow. They are currently in our brooder and will go to pasture as soon as the weather and their development allows. We look forward to watching them learn and grow and enjoy the beauty of their natural environment here at the Farm.From pasture to porch…bringing simplicity to your shopping experienceCome VisitFarm tours will be starting up again soon. We know how much fun seeing the baby chicks can be. We have our spring dates posted on our website for guided visits. Click the button below to get your tickets! We also have openings for private group tours. These are great opportunities for preschool classes, daycares, homeschool groups or scouting troops. For more information on these, please contact us via the email in the link below or send a message to Joe (joesfarm2@yahoo.com)Tickets Stock your freezerA great way to combat the insecurities in our food supply is to stock your freezer. We are always here to answer any questions you might have on what is best to order for your family’s needs. Stop on by at the Farm Store or send us an email. We will be opening pre-orders for quarter, half and whole beef soon. We have already begun collecting names on our interest form. We will be sending out more information on how our 2023 season will work for ordering. If you haven't already, make sure to get signed up using the link below. This is a great way to stock up your freezer and have meat all winter long.Interest Form Final thoughtsIf you would like to have your order included in this week's shipment, please make sure to have those placed by 11:59pm EST Sunday, March 19th. Also, if you you looking to start your own little flock of egg layers? We can help you get started or help add to the birds you have! Quantities are limited, so email Joe at joesfarm2@yahoo.com soon!As always, thank you to all our customers for making this operation possible. We are working hard to bring the best quality products to your table to enjoy. Whether you shop via our website or stop in at our Farm Store, we love meeting you and sharing our love for Regenerative farming.~ Joe Koopsenwww.joesfarm.us style="padding-top:12px;padding-bottom:12px;padding-right:0;padding-left:0" class="mceLayoutContainer" valign="top">

Getting Ready For 7,000+ Little Chicks!

Chicks Are Coming!In a few weeks, our little farm will be full of little fuzz balls running all around! See below how we care for thousands of little chicks! As I type this email, it is 45 degrees outside and snow is melting! It may only be mid-February, but the warmer weather has us dreaming of Spring. Spring on the Farm is one of our favorite times. We have thousands of little yellow fuzz balls running around in our brooder! It also brings us sunny days spent in the pastures with all our different animals! As we prepare for Spring, we wanted to take our customers along with us. Our goal is that you feel part of the process so that you can feel confident in the food you are consuming. That starts with baby every March. March 14, we will welcome our first batch of 7,600 chicks for 2023! It is hard to even put into words how much excitement surrounds welcoming our new fuzzy friends. Chick arrivals mean *all hands on deck* in order to get the chicks from the hatchery trays into our brooder. We are incredibly blessed to be on a weekly route for the hatchery which means we get chicks 12 hours after hatching! That is incredibly fast! For context, a few years ago, our chicks shipped through USPS. They could be 36+ hours old by the time we received them at Joe’s Farm. The first 72 hours are the most important in lives of our chickens. The sooner we can get the chicks into a warm stress free environment, with clean water and feed, the better! Being able to partner with our hatchery has made an impact on the welfare of our flock. We are always looking for ways to improve the welfare of our precious animals. We look forward to welcoming these amazing creatures onto our farm in just over a month! Make sure to follow along with our social media pages or here on our newsletter to watch these little chicks grow. Tour the Brooder with Farmer JoeLots of CHICKS!! Stock your freezerA great way to combat the insecurities in our food supply is to stock your freezer. We are always here to answer any questions you might have on what is best to order for your family’s needs. Stop on by at the Farm Store or send us an email. Soon, we will be opening up for pre-orders on our 2023 whole, half and quarter beef boxes. We have created a google form to gauge interest so we can anticipate how to best serve our customers. If you are interested in learning more, follow the click box below to get on our interest list.Interest FormVisit our Farm StoreOur self-serve farm store is open 7 days a week from 8am-8pm. It is located in our older looking barn on your right when you pull in the drive.. We currently have eggs, chicken, pork, beef, and honey. We are always adding more products so be sure to check back for more products.Joe's Farm (our on farm market) - 53323 Pulver Road, Three Rivers, MIClick for directionsOur Meats: From our pasture to your porchBe sure to get your orders in by midnight on Sunday nights for delivery the next week! We recently restocked a lot of our most popular meats! Shop Now

Strengthening the Path to Sustainability

Embracing the simplicity and integrity of regenerative farmingPinpointing the problemWhen you think about farming, you might imagine rolling hills or acres of corn as high as your knees. You might see cows on pasture and chickens gathered around their coop. A horse might be seen leaving the warmth of a beautiful red barn. This is the imagine you SHOULD see. Sadly, most farms in America look nothing like this anymore. Locked in cages or stalls, many animals will never graze the open pasture or feel the sun on their faces. Chickens labeled as “cage free” may still live in huge factory style barns, forced to live out their days in their own waste. This needs to change. If you have been watching the news, you have probably heard stories about Avian Influenza. It is no secret that AI (Avian Influenza) has hit the US very hard. It has claimed the lives of 58+ million chickens just this year! This has obviously affected the national and global egg supply. With our math, we have found that roughly 12-18% of eggs have been taken off the market. This may not seem like a lot but it is enough to empty store shelves. From inflation adding costs to production to barns full of birds burning to the ground, the egg and chicken prices have soared. It can be overwhelming trying to keep up with all the hurdles between our food source and our families.Navigating towards a solutionFrom a few chickens in my backyard to a fully operational regenerative farm, I have always wanted to use the most ethical farming practices. This meant learning from other farmers and researching all the “how-tos”. It also meant a lot of trail and error. But throughout the process of learning, one thing always seemed to resonate, simplicity. Don’t get me wrong, by simplicity I don’t mean the life of a farmer is easy. It means long hours, hardwork and muddy boots. But what I do mean is that we often complicate things.Raising with integrityWe work hard to raise our animals in the most natural way possible. We want to limit human intervention so we don’t use hormones or antibiotics. Our beef are grass-fed and grass-finished. Our chickens are moved daily to new, fresh pasture. These practices can help us mitigate the risks of Avian Influenza. Healthy practices equal happy and healthy animals. This is better for not only the animals within our care, but the customers who consume our products.From pasture to porch…bringing simplicity to your shopping experience Shop localFind a farmer you can trust. See how their animals are cared for. Transparency is the first step in establishing the relationship between your food source and your table. We always welcome visitors, so if you are in the area feel free to stop by. We, along with many other farmers, are working hard to keep up the demand especially for eggs right now. Always feel free to contact and ask about our inventory. We never want a customer to leave disappointed. We also will post to our social media if we are running low. Make sure to like and follow us for those updates. Stock your freezerA great way to combat the insecurities in our food supply is to stock your freezer. We are always here to answer any questions you might have on what is best to order for your family’s needs. Stop on by at the Farm Store or send us an email. Soon, we will be opening up for pre-orders on our 2023 whole, half and quarter beef boxes. We have created a google form to gauge interest so we can anticipate how to best serve our customers. If you are interested in learning more, follow the click box below to get on our interest list.Final thoughtsWith all the negativity surrounding food these days, we want to bring enjoyment back to the shopping experience. Putting nutritious and delicious food on your table shouldn’t be complicated. You can shop with confidence knowing we take pride in the care and welfare of our livestock. We want to thank our amazing customers. If it wasn’t for your support, our family farm would not be able to exist. You play a vital role in the sustainability of regenerative farming.

What a Great Weekend

APPPA

Thank you! 2022 Recap

Thank you for your support this year!We want to thank all our customers for your support! This year was a fantastic year and its all because of YOU! Check out how you helped regenerate soil, produce nutrient dense food, and give so many animals lives worth living!SoilThis year, because of your support, we were able to continue to regenerate over 70+ acres of soil. This acreage used to be conventionally farmed and had no life left in the soil. Now each year, as we continue to rotate our animals, we are building the soils and bringing life back to them! By using animal rotation, we allow their manure to be a benefit to the soil. We also allow the soils to rest before grazing them again. This technique benefits both the animals and the health of the land.Nutritious FoodIt is such a great pleasure to be able to serve you, our amazing and loyal customers! We take great care in providing our customers nutritious and healthy products. By healing the soils and feeding our animals the appropriate diets, we can increase the micronutrient count in our foods. This, in turn, helps all who partake in eating our food to stay healthy and strong!In 2022 we produced:87,000+ pounds of Chicken 🍗34,000+ dozen Eggs 🍳34,000+ pounds of Turkey 🦃11,229 pounds of Beef 🥩Animal WelfareThank you for giving us the opportunity to raise animals the way they should be raised! We believe animals were created to express their natural behaviors and we are incredibly thankful that we can farm this way! During the spring, summer, and fall, all our animals are moved to fresh pasture every single day!In 2022 we raised25,000+ Chickens 🐓2,300+ Turkeys 🦃32 Cows 🐄Here’s to another great year!Here’s to another great year!Thank you for supporting our farm, for healing soils, for giving animals a good life, and for feeding you and your family healthy food! We look forward to what the next year will bring and we hope we can continue to serve you!