Lending Successful

Organic Compost Production Expansion

by Broadfork Farm
Organic Compost Production Expansion

Broadfork Farm is increasing production capacity to expand their Compost Earth! organic soil amendment product lines to meet soaring demand.

Project Summary
  • Location: Trout Lake, WA
  • Products: Regenerative Inputs
  • Loan Term: 60 months
  • Interest Rate: 7.25% APR
  • Repayments Begin: 6 months after disbursement
  • Individual Lender Cap: $1,000
$87,600
100% of $87,600

Funded on 06/09/2022

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Overview

Broadfork Farm is a working homestead and regenerative soil amendment company, owned and operated by Adam Hyde, Kaye Jones, and their three children in Trout Lake, Washington. Broadfork's business mission is to supply small and large-scale regional growers with premium quality living soil products. Their Compost Earth! brand is positioned at the exciting intersection of microbiome sciences, human gut function, and soil health. 

Compost Earth!'s primary markets include bulk retail deliveries to home gardeners and bulk wholesale to commercial growers–mainly orchards, vineyards, and intensive market gardeners. They are also currently developing a set of packaged compost teas for online retail. 

The core of their methods and technology is adopted from close collaborators in Austria and Switzerland, and represents state-of-the-art on-farm windrow composting. Compost Earth! places a high value on safe and clean raw material inputs for their compost, the majority of which are sourced within a 10-mile radius of the operation. 


Use of Funds

High demand for their top-shelf soil amendments, which translates into an opportunity to grow and expand the business, is requiring Broadfork Farm to increase production capacity and expand product offerings to include liquid bio-amendments, also known as compost teas. A loan from Steward will be used to purchase key equipment, as well as help Broadfork make necessary improvements to compost site infrastructure–specifically irrigation and covered storage for material handling. 


Regenerative & Sustainable Practices

Broadfork Farm produces humus compost which is a living supplement and the best source of whole food for healthy soils. Their methods of production use high-quality raw materials, free of contaminants and locally sourced within 10 miles of their facility in Trout Lake, WA. Working in accordance with the earth, their farming practices include:

  • Nutrient management: They carefully test and source raw material inputs from local organic dairy farms. Their soil health enterprise is a social venture that seeks to address persistent water pollution problems in the Trout Lake Valley due to the high concentration of dairy farms, while providing a critical soil and plant health supplement to regenerative growers.

  • Recycling of organic wastes: All organic waste needs to be diverted from the landfill, where it would produce methane emissions that are released into the atmosphere, contributing to climate change. Broadfork turns bio-waste into a living soil amendment, bolstering the land’s ability to sequester and store atmospheric carbon.

  • Organic certification: Their soil amendments are certified by the Washington State Department of Agriculture (WSDA) Organic Program, as a registered Input Material for Organic Production. In 2022, they are pursuing WSDA organic certification for their forage crops.

  • Cover cropping: They use a low-till practice of farming and produce 15-acres of alfalfa-grass hay, and 4-acres of diverse cover crops that are harvested as fresh green chop for their compost–retaining soil nutrients and increasing fertility across the land.

  • Living systems: Their compost is a living soil supplement that functions as a whole food and probiotic for soils. The humus provides the base material for many regenerative practices, including biopriming of seed, liquid biological extracts, and aerated teas, serving as a living roof medium, tree restoration, and native plant propagation, and enhancing plant resilience and resistance to disease.
  • June 10, 2022

    Thank You Steward Team And All Loan Participants!

    Compost Earth! Is thrilled for this opportunity to grow our business, and I want to thank Steward and all our loan participants for prioritizing living soil! More updates coming soon as we crack into the expansion projects.

    With gratitude,
    Adam and Kaye

Equipment--$27,600: This includes key equipment to expand the liquid biological amendment products and services, including a sprayer, a four-wheeler, a trailer, a microbe brewer, and a harvester.

Irrigation Improvements--$10,000: This includes installing a new in-ground line and renovating their existing wheel line for their field crops as well as setting up a pump station for their composting site. 

Storage--$10,000: This includes a storage shed as well as a bin system for storing equipment and finished product.

Refinance–$40,000: This includes the refinance of their dump truck at more favorable rates. 

Total Budget: $87,600


This loan will be made to Broadfork Farm LLC, a Washington limited liability company, which produces biological soil amendments for local farms and home gardeners. 

This loan will be used to purchase equipment, improve farm infrastructure, and refinance a dump truck.

The total loan amount is $87,600, which will assist Broadfork Farm in growing and expanding their business.

This loan is set at a 7.25% interest rate, with a 60 month term, and fully amortized monthly payments beginning 6 months after funds are disbursed.


Borrower Loan Agreement Download
Lender Participation Agreement Download

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