Today we’d like to introduce you to Gabe & Katie Farrar. Them and their team share their story with us below:
Farrar Family Farm is located just south of Kansas City, Missouri, outside of a little town called Adrian. It is run by Gabe and Katie Farrar… a hard-working, third-generation farming family whose passion is to provide consistently healthy meat for you to feed your family. They achieve that through sustainably and responsibly raising animals, following the tried & true methods from days gone by.
Our story begins in 1956 when my grandparents made the decision to leave the big city and move to the country. They purchased a farm located at 150 highway and 291 highway in rural Lee’s Summit, MO. After they passed away, my family was able to live at the farm for ten more years. As time went on, the landscape began to quickly change around the old farm. Progress had taken over. It was harder to hear the birds sing and tranquility was transformed into traffic jams! It was time to leave. Sadly, the property was sold, but my dad’s passion for farming continued to grow and he was able to share his love of the land with me and my siblings.
In 2007, the Lord led our family to our current farm in Adrian, MO. We worked hard to reclaim and heal the land that had been unmanaged for several years. During this time, we became increasingly aware of what was happening to our food system in America. Although we already had our suspicions, documentaries such as Food Inc., Fresh, and Joel Salatin’s Polyface Farms confirmed our convictions and awakened a desire in us to get away from industrial farming and get back to basics. We wanted to produce quality food for our family, heal and build up the soil, and raise animals the way nature intended.
An idea was born! My wife (Katie) & I (Gabe) had been working part-time on the farm since 2013 while still working nine-to-five jobs in the city. In 2016 we decided to make the leap to pursue regenerative farming as a full-time career. As the years have gone, on we have learned many new skills, failed several times, tried again, met many wonderful people in the farming community, and most importantly, enjoyed really good food! It’s a lot of hard work but we get to do it together, as a family.
Our goal is to provide you with naturally raised wholesome food using sustainable farming methods that mimic the patterns found in nature. We raise grass-fed grass-finished beef, pasture-raised chicken & turkey, and forest-raised pork without the use of chemicals, antibiotics, growth hormones, etc. It is important for us to be good stewards of the land God has entrusted to us and raise animals humanely in their natural environment. The benefits of our methods are passed along to you by providing healthy and clean meat for your table. Thank you for choosing to support our family farm & natural farming practices!
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
We jumped into a business with no hands-on previous experience. We did a lot of research and had a decent amount of head knowledge, but we mostly learned through our many failures and trials. We not only had the stress and hard work of starting a business from scratch, but in addition, we worked through the difficulties that come with learning how to farm. Working at the mercy of the highly unpredictable weather and learning the specifics of each animal species have been some of the hardest feats to overcome. It does get easier each year, but we also seem to add new components to our business that always keep us learning and on our toes.
Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Our family is passionate about quality food and sustainable agriculture. We offer grass-fed grass-finished beef & lamb, forest-raised pork, and pasture-raised chicken & turkey.
At Farrar Family Farm, we strive to provide you with delicious and healthy locally-raised meats. Everything we sell is raised by us on our farm. We focus on regenerative grass-based farming practices. Our goal is to heal and improve the land with our animals which creates healthy, high-quality meat for you to enjoy.
How can I get some of your products? Order Online!
We offer home delivery to the KC Metro, once a month community pickups (7 locations), on-farm pick up by appointment, and we sell at the Lee’s Summit farmers market during the summer (Saturday only). We also sell bulk (wholesale) beef & pork twice a year AND offer two CSA’s (summer & winter). You can even find our products on the menu at a few local restaurants around Kansas City.
We work hard to make our clean meats easily accessible to the greater KC Metro. We would love to be your local protein farmers! Shop our products by ordering online through our website.
Follow online via Facebook or Instagram at: @farrarfamilyfarmkc for farm life updates as well as special promotions and product details.
Any big plans?
We plan to continue farming in a way that heals the land, produces healthy animals, and supplies our community (and beyond) with clean and healthy meat as long as people are willing to partner with us- eating with a purpose!
In the short term, we’re excited to grow our flock of sheep and offer more of our grass-finished lamb each year. We’re also excited to partner with more local restaurants that enjoy featuring local food.
We’re excited to see the continued results of healing and improving the land year after year. Eventually, we would love to expand to more land and use these same practices! We also hope to inspire other farmers to try these natural farming practices.
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: www.farrarfamilyfarmkc.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/farrarfamilyfarmkc
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/farrarfamilyfarmkc
Image Credits:
All images taken by and are property of Katie & Gabe Farrar of Farrar Family Farm, LLC.
