Strawberries

Berry Dairy, The

Website: www.theberrydairy.com

This grower has a photo album.

Our Story

The Berry Dairy got its start as a family owned and operated business in 1977 when Joe and Rosi Faust moved away from the Kiel, WI area and bought a dairy farm near Calumetville, WI in northeastern Fond du Lac County. They started with a 50 cow Holstein milking herd and raised 80+ acres of alfalfa, corn, and barley for feed and bedding for the herd. They also started small plots of strawberries, raspberries, and onions on the farm. In 1988 they increased production and began selling strawberries to friends and neighbors, adding acreage and production of berries ever since. In 2000 Joe and Rosi decided to quit milking cows after several years of significantly reduced market prices in the dairy industry. They began focusing more on growing fresh fruits and vegetables and selling at local farmers’ markets and from the farm. Today, sons Joe and Jeff Faust, who both have UW degrees in horticulture, help with field and hoophouse production of select crops, including (in season): strawberries, raspberries, gourmet popcorn, specialty onions, shallots, pickling cucumbers, kohlrabi, cabbage, watermelon, muskmelon, winter squash, tomatoes, garlic, and more! Joe and Rosi’s five daughters – Angela, Kristine, Lisa, Karen, and Amanda – who were raised on the farm and grew up working in the family business, also help with farmers’ markets when they can.

Growing Practices

We incorporate the following growing practices for our fruit and vegetable crops:

Minimal Chemical Use, and NO chemical use (natural or synthetic) on MOST of our crops

Biological Pesticides (derived from living organisms) in place of some synthetic products

Integrated Pest Management (IPM) – we try to avoid using pesticides unless populations get too large or dense and cannot be controlled by other means; if we deem spraying is necessary to save our crop (and stay in business) we follow all legal requirements, try our best to limit pesticide drift, and rotate chemical groups if a second application is needed to limit pesticide resistance in insect or weed populations; we have an up-to-date Wisconsin pesticide applicator license and have gone through certification training to ensure proper use of any pesticide.

Crop Rotation – change the location of our crops from year to year (every few years for berries) so we are not constantly drawing the same nutrients from the soil year after year, as well as interrupt pest life cycles

Conservation Tillage – we try to leave residue on the soil surface between plantings to limit erosion and maintain higher soil organic matter for plant nutrition, and try to limit rototilling to save our soil quality and tilth for years to come

Cover Crops – when no fruit or vegetable crop is growing we try to plant short-lived grasses and legumes to hold the soil in place, build soil nutrition, and suppress weeds

No – GMO seed
Yes – Synthetic fertilizers and pesticides (very limited use – please read above under IPM)
Yes – OMRI listed (Certified Organic – approved) pesticides (on an as-needed basis)

If you have questions about our growing practices, please email jeffrey.faust@rocketmail.com

Our Products

Strawberries, raspberries, gourmet popcorn, storage onions, cipollini onions, shallots, pickling cucumbers, kohlrabi, cabbage, watermelon, muskmelon, winter squash, tomatoes, garlic, spinach, beets, carrots etc. (Highly perishable items might not be available through Trust Local Foods)

Who Do You Support When Buying from Us

Joe and Rosi Faust
Joe (Jr) and Rachel Faust
Jeff Faust
A handful of part-time seasonal employees (students) and other family members, that help us during busier times of the season.
A few other local farms with whom we work cooperatively; supporting one small farm often helps other small farms!

 
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