Winter 2009

Stephen and Dawn Robertson, owners of East Fork Farm in Marshall, are a prime example of farmers who are succeeding in spite of changing landscapes and markets. The farm is diversified—it produces lamb, chicken, eggs, and trout—and the Roberstons market and distribute their own products.  “This isn’t conventional farming; you can’t survive doing conventional farming anymore,” Stephen says.

In addition to selling directly at Asheville City Market, North Asheville Tailgate Market, and their farm store, the Robertsons sell  to Greenlife Grocery; Asheville restaurants Zambra ,Grove Park Inn, Laurey’s Catering, Jack of the Wood, Bouchon French Bistro, and Tupelo Honey Café; and Square One Bistro in Stephen’s home town of Hendersonville. They’re also building rental cabins, which will allow them to tap into the growing market of farm tourism 

 East Fork Farm’s lamb comes from certified grass-fed sheep. Their chickens are free range. All the animals are certified humanely-raised, and aren’t given hormones or antibiotics. The farm itself is certified River Friendly, with animals fenced out of the stream, and Appalachian Grown, a certification that identifies family farms in Western North Carolina and the Southern Appalachian mountains. 

The Robertsons’ extra effort to treat their animals and land with care are profitable as well as ethical. Sustainable foods appeal to a niche market of consumers willing to pay a fair cost for their food. That is, consumers will sometimes pay a slightly higher price at the time of purchase so that they don’t have to pay a far higher environmental, economic, and cultural price in the future. 

Stephen emphasizes that real, working farms may not be as pristine as people imagine. But when I visited his farm, I arrived at a beautiful scene: lambs playing in the snow. New lambs were born in time for last year’s Mountain Farm and Garden Tour, which featured East Fork, and the farm impressed those visitors too. “The hens’ colorful, healthy combs, the fields where they range—people tell me they really appreciate those things when they see them,” Stephen says. 

A connection with food is what many family farm supporters seek, and providing it is one of the Roberstons’ main reasons for farming. They process their own meat. Stephen pulled his first lamb this year. Their daughters care for the chickens and rabbits, going out to feed them and smash the ice on their water in the mornings before school. Stephen says, “I want my kids to appreciate where their food comes from, and know how much work goes into it.”