Meet the Farmers
Co-owners Greg and Heather Askins have been living on the property and running the farm stand for the past 3 years. The couple grew up in the orchards of Southern Oregon and now manage the 220-tree apple orchard and farm stand with their 21 and 18 year old daughters. It's a family story!
Fox Run Farm’s roadside farm stand on Main Street in Medford, Oregon has been an established fixture in the community for more than 50 years and serves a varied customer base of tourists, local chefs, wholesalers, and individuals. Located just three miles from downtown, with one of the only established apple orchards in heart of Southern Oregon’s Rogue Valley, Fox Run Farm was synonymous with Fresh pressed Apple Cider for many years. Currently selling our own fruit, honey, produce, chicken and duck eggs as well as fruits and vegetables from other nearby farms, always focusing on local, sustainable produce. We also sell packaged and prepared local Pickles, jams, and jellies though our primary crop is heritage apples.
Reason for Fundraising
We have done significant work to improve the health of the orchard, and we expect a good harvest year after year. However, selling the fruit alone cannot provide enough income to sustain our family and our business. Historically, Fox Run Farm has been known for the fresh apple cider produced from our heritage apple trees. Recent legal changes, however, have created massive challenges and made it impossible to comply in our current setup and production space. A dedicated commercial kitchen is now required and underway in order to comply with the USDA's Food Safety Modernization Act.
We are eager to restore the production of Fox Run Farm's heritage apple cider, and with your investment, we plan to finish construction of an external, detached kitchen to do just that. Only then may we secure the future of these heritage apple trees. Help us restore this critical part of our business and community!
Sustainability Practices
We choose to live and work in alignment with the principles of permaculture, and we work with local farmers in as many ways as possible. For example, this season we have expanded into growing rows of corn, squash, and beans utilizing the native Three Sisters concept! We use no-till soil-building techniques, have a dedicated native pollinator space, and we never use chemical sprays or fertilizer. Recently, we installed a black soldier fly bin, large enough to supply a substantial portion of our chicken, duck, and turkey food. Finally, we compost our own food scraps as well as those which we pick up from a local food pantry.
Steward Comments
Greg absolutely has the conviction and passion we look for when supporting small farms. We're so impressed with his commitment to living a thoughtful, sustainability-focused life on his farm, running both the farm stand as well as a nearby health food store.
