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calling. This is something our ancestors worked really hard at preserving. We honor that. It’ s in our blood- and we love it. We wouldn’ t want to do anything else, even on top of working 40 to 60-hour workweeks with our 9-5’ s. … We cherish the land that we’ ve been given to steward. We see it as a real blessing, and as a real privilege … We try to operate in a way that is good for us now; but also the land, for years to come, because we’ re leaving it and its legacy to my daughter, to our fifth generation.”
Operations on the farm have changed somewhat
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throughout time and seasons. Angel describes some their current operations,“ We host different kinds of events on the farm. We board horses. We supply eggs- we have laying hens, and we have meat chickens. We usually run beef cattle; but right now, we are going to have just a few beef processed for friends and family this year. This is because our main production focus, separate from the ACES program, is Katahdin sheep. That’ s a new adventure for us- we are so excited. We have 19 lambs that have just been |
born in the last three weeks. … We’ re having a ton of fun in that process, and learning all that we can learn about the world of small ruminants. My brother has been posting a lot about our journey with these sheep on social media, and it’ s been a lot of fun. We also produce vegetables seasonally. Over the past two years, we really have just been producing for our current customer base, friends, and family. In the past, we have done larger operations, our own CSAs, and fed into different markets like the Madison County Farmer’ s Market.” |
Mykell Barlow( Angel’ s brother) is the Creative Director at Ballew Farms. He is also proud of their heritage, and the responsibility of what they have been given isn’ t taken lightly,“ This land has been in our family for generations, and while there have been different seasons of activity over the years, our family has continuously stewarded, maintained, and protected the land itself. That continuity is central to our story.” He goes on to mention,“ Today, Ballew Farms focuses on responsible land care, livestock, and thoughtful |