Meet the 13 Farms & Food Producers awarded 2026 Farmer Fund Grants
The Port Townsend Food Co-op is proud to announce the distribution of $83,844 in Farmer Fund Grants to thirteen farms/food producers across East Jefferson County. These grants will help local farmers invest in critical infrastructure, equipment, and projects that improve food security and sustainability in our community. From mobile chicken coops to vacuum packing machines and wheelchair-accessible garden beds, these grants ensure that farms can grow, innovate, and continue providing fresh, local food to the region.
"We are thrilled to support these hardworking farmers who play a vital role in our community’s food system," said Kenna Eaton, General Manager of the Port Townsend Food Co-op. "These grants are about more than just funding projects; they’re about resilience, sustainability, and ensuring that local food remains accessible to everyone. Supporting small farms strengthens our local economy, protects farmland, and improves food security for generations to come."
About the Farmer Fund Grant Program
The Farmer Fund Grant Program is made possible by donations collected from Co-op members and shoppers from January through September each year. Every fall, local farmers and food producers apply for funding to support projects that will enhance their operations, increase production, and improve food distribution in Jefferson County.
The Co-op’s Community Engagement Committee, made up of board members, members-at-large, Co-op staff, and a committee chair, carefully reviews each application. This year, the committee evaluated 27 applications with grant requests ranging from $950 to $30,000.
"Choosing recipients is no easy task," said Andrea Stafford, Marketing Director. "Every application represents a farm working hard to provide food for our community, and we take our responsibility seriously. Through rigorous discussion and a scoring process, we aim to distribute funds in a way that maximizes impact. This year’s grants will make a tangible difference for these farms, and we hope to grow the fund even more in 2026 to support additional projects."
The committee granted five full grants and eight partial grants to local farms ranging from $950 to $10,000, with funding going toward farm infrastructure, storage solutions, equipment purchases, and accessibility improvements. Farms receiving grants for 2026 are; The Glendale Farm, Goosefoot Farm, Chimalow Produce, Up Hill Farmers, Cold Snap Farm, Chimacum Valley Grainery, Shy Acre Farm, Solstice Family Farm, Crust Bakery/Market Kitchen, CoLab (a collaboration of 3 larger farms: Dharma Ridge Farm, Red Dog Farm, SpringRain Farm and also Hopscotch Farm and Cannery, Midori Farm, and Stellar J Farm), Saltwater Seeds, Straight Up Mushrooms and Stellar J Farm.
Meet the Farms
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Meet the Farms 🧑🌾
The Glendale Farm
Glendale Farm is a historic, multigenerational farm located in the Chimacum Valley, established in 1857. Once a conventional agricultural property, the farm is now being thoughtfully rehabilitated as a shared, regenerative agricultural landscape that supports small farms, community food access, and long-term land stewardship. Today, Glendale Farm operates as a multi-tenant working farm, providing land, water, and infrastructure for independent farm businesses while preserving the property’s agricultural heritage. Current efforts focus on restoring core infrastructure and building a community farm stand to strengthen the local food system and expand access to fresh, locally grown food.
Current Farm Tenants & Partners:
Dharma Ridge Farm – Certified organic vegetables
BellStar Farm & Forge – Mixed farming and craft production
DragonHeart Flowers – Specialty cut flowers
TJ’s Bees – Local honey and pollination services
Uphill Farms – Diversified small-scale agriculture
The Farmer Fund will help secure a shared cold storage unit at Glendale Farm to increase the productivity, storage capacity, and distribution potential for partner farmers — including sheep, organic produce, bee, and poultry producers.
Goosefoot Farm
Goosefoot Farm is a free food farm project that grows produce, herbs, and flowers in Chimacum, Washington. We are a collective young farmers that believe that high quality produce should be accessible to all people, regardless of their employment status, housing situation, income level, sexual orientation, gender, race, age, or ability. All of our food goes out for free to Jefferson County residents through various community partnerships. Past partnerships include the Tri-area Food bank, Jefferson Healthcare, Recovery Cafe and Jefferson County Anti-racist Fund. We are a proud garden member of local non-profit, Food Bank Growers.
The Farmer Fund will go to purchase a walk-behind tractor that will improve essential farm operations while protecting soil health and increasing efficiency. This will also them to grow more food for their free distribution program.
Chimalow Produce
At Chimalow Produce we focus on growing high-quality nutrient dense vegetables, herbs and fruits. After years of farming multiple locations, we are grateful to have secured a permanent home on West Valley Rd in Chimacum. We sell our produce at the Port Townsend Farmer’s Markets (Wednesdays and Saturdays), to local grocery stores, restaurants, caterers, food producers, and the food bank. We plan to introduce a CSA in 2026, expanding access to our farm’s produce through a weekly box program.
Go to our website at www.chimalowproduce.com to learn more.
The Farmer Fund will help them to purchase a power harrow, a specialized bed-preparation tool that attaches to the back of their tractor and will significantly enhance the efficiency, consistency, and environmental sustainability of their production systems.
Up Hill Farmers
Uphill Farmers is a two-person micro-farm raising small livestock with a focus on animal welfare, robust livestock, and ecologically-integrative practices. We specialize in at-risk heritage breeds of poultry and waterfowl, working to produce genetically diverse, hardy, adaptable animals with a high quality of life that can contribute to building resilient and compassionate food systems to meet the demands of climate change and agricultural progress.
The Farmer Fund will help them improve their rabbit shelter to mitigate issues such as leaks and time consuming repairs. It will also allow them to expand their current output.
Cold Snap Farm
Cold Snap Farm is located on 20 acres north of Quilcene, Wash. The land was not replanted after it was logged, allowing bigleaf maple trees to thrive. Approximately 40 years ago, the maples were also cut which caused them to coppice.
What we see now is hundreds of multi trunked maples growing on a steep, eastern faced hill. It is an absolutely ideal environment for tapping trees.
With such a lofty incline from the building site, Daryl currently uses a gravity system that brings the sap straight into barrels which then drips into the evaporator pan.
Each year, the entire system gets upgraded. From using a single propane cooker and a pot, to a welded up stainless steel commercial sink with 5 propane burners, to wrapping bricks and concrete blocks around it to create a enormous firebox and using wood. And now, to a homemade barrel evaporator. From using milk jugs and buckets for sap collection to thousands of feet of 3/6 tubing and hundreds of spiles. We are moving forward with every year!
The Farmer Fund will help reimburse the cost of essential equipment already purchased to upgrade again and modernize their maple syrup operation, including a new evaporator, reverse osmosis system, filter press, pump, and bottler. These upgrades replace an inefficient homemade system and will allow them to operate more sustainably, increase production, and earn a reliable, livable income.
Chimacum Valley Grainery
Chimacum Valley Grainery is an organic family farm, stone mill, wood fired bakery and craft micro-brewery — growing and milling heritage and modern landrace grains that are selected and bred for flavor, nutrition and local climate resilience. We farm in the fertile valley soils along Chimacum Creek, on Chemakum and S’Kllalam lands, surrounded by a vibrant agricultural community and within an interdependent ecosystem of fields, forests and salmon streams. We’re glad and grateful to grow food for our regional resilience, in a network of interconnected relations, and we’re excited to be part of a revival of small-scale, community-based grain mills producing fresh-milled and nutrient-dense flours — along with sourdough bread, traditionally floor malted grain and farmhouse beer.
We’re committed to growing whole grains & nourishing whole communities.
The Farmer Fund will assist in the purchasing of a delivery van that will allow them to transport their growing volume of bread and flour more efficiently, eliminating the need for multiple trips and reducing strain on daily farm operations.
Shy Acre Farm
Shy Acre Farm was started by the mother-daughter team, Celine and Adrianna Santiago in 2019. The land that we tend is a statement of simplicity and resourcefulness. Shy Acre is small yet impactful. The size is intentional to demonstrate the scale of abundant productivity within a limited space. The family’s farming backgrounds and practices span permaculture, urban gardening, livestock, orchard production, beekeeping, herbalism, habitat restoration, as well as running a commercial seed business.
Shy Acre Farm, operating completely off grid since 2019, has become the center for mutually beneficial community programs within a future 13-acre development. In seven years of operation, Shy Acre Farm installed three greenhouses, a compost system, wash station, pollinator gardens, fruit trees, and Pavilion with picnic tables for community gathering space. Shy Acre supports community, educational, and art programs in this beautiful setting. We encourage place based social change to enhance community resilience.
The Farmer Fund will go to the purchase of a two-door 54" refrigeration unit to meet their storage capacity needs and provide more fresh food for the community.
Solstice Family Farm
Solstice Family Farm is located on 33 acres on the beautiful Olympic Peninsula. We grow vegetables, fruit, eggs and meat for our local community and utilize a variety of sustainable, organic growing techniques such as crop rotation, orcharding, pasture management, animal husbandry, and integrated pest management. Farmers Jen & Sean have been farming for about 19 years on various pieces of land in the Pacific Northwest as well as Montana. As we begin our 14th season, we are deeply grateful for the opportunity to work with this magnificent, ancient land ecosystem to provide healthy, delicious, high quality food for our local community!
The Farmer Fund will go to help their historic 15,000‑sq. ft. barn which is essential for housing animals, storing equipment and crops, and supporting daily farm operations. Funding will cover a professional inspection and priority repairs to preserve this critical structure for safe, sustainable use for years to come.
Crust Bakery / Market Kitchen
Crust Bakery is a woman owned and run small food processor that crafts hand pies and soups from Washington-grown produce, fruits, meats and grains. Inspired by the food that is grown and raised in Jefferson County, ingredients are purchased directly from local farmers. Hand pies and soups are available at the Port Townsend Saturday Farmers Market, Chimacum Corner Farm Stand, Aldrich’s Market, The PT Food Co-op and more.
Crust Bakery operates an incubator kitchen called Market Kitchen, a WSDA-licensed food processing facility that is made available to other local farmers and small food businesses so they too can create value-added products to feed our community.
With grant funding, the antique powerhouse of a Hobart mixer will be repaired. This mixer allows for larger batches of dough to be produced. Market Kitchen is one of the few commercial kitchens in Jefferson county to off er this amenity. This mixer has a long history of being used by local legendary businesses, to have it back in working order is essential.
The Farmer Fund will be used to repair the transmission of a very old workhorse, 80 Quart Hobart Floor Mixer. Used by many in the community to mix dough this will increase efficiency of time and labor resulting in more food produced for the community.
Photo by Deja View Photography
CoLab
We are a collaboration of three Jefferson County Farms- Dharma Ridge Farm, Red Dog Farm, and Spring Rain Farm.
Dharma Ridge Farm: Co-owners Haley and Zach have been in agriculture in Jefferson County since they met in 1998. We are a WSDA Certified Organic operation growing 80 acres of mixed vegetables. Our produce is sold locally at The Food Coop as well as regionally through wholesale distribution to stores all over Washington, Idaho and Oregon. Dharma Ridge Farm is proudly a multi-generational farm with all three of our adult children working full time on the farm.
Red Dog Farm: Red Dog Farm is owned and operated by Karyn Williams. We are a 23-acre certified organic farm in the Chimacum Valley, founded in 2008. We grow over 100 varieties of vegetables, plus berries, tulips, and plant starts. Red Dog supplies more than 60 outlets, operates a year-round farmstand, attends local farmers markets, and runs a CSA program.
SpringRain Farm: SpringRain Farm and Orchard is co-owned by John Bellow and Roxanne Hudson. We are a certified organic farm operating on 26 acres in Chimacum and have been farming here since 2008. We are diversified and produce berries, greenhouse crops, salad greens, apples, pears, plums, peaches, quince, grapes, along with duck eggs, chicken, duck, and rabbit, and value-added products.
The Farmer Fund will help these farmers purchase a Steamer. The Steamer will help these farms grow healthier, more productive crops by eliminating weed seeds and soil-borne diseases, reducing labor and increasing yields. Its chemical-free sanitation supports strong seedlings, longer growing seasons, and more high-quality produce for our regional communities.
Saltwater Seeds
We grow open-pollinated seeds adapted for the Maritime Northwest. About 90% of our varieties are Certified Organic. We are inspired by the endless combinations of colors, textures, flavors, and shapes of the plants we work with. This region has a vibrant agricultural community, thoughtful farmers, engaged farm workers, longtime residents supportive of small-scale, local farming, and a willingness to continually question the role of agriculture in colonial imperialism, unequal land access, and institutionalized racism. Together we are envisioning and enacting systems that will become more just.
As a small, diversified business, we are committed to contributing to our small-scale agricultural economy by finding, selecting, and stewarding varieties that are productive, delicious, beautiful, and well-adapted to our maritime climate. We envision a world where agricultural work is valued as the essential work, where the land is worked by a diverse population making good wages, and there is an assortment of crops in each field that reflects the wide range of people caring for the plants and animals that feed us. We want to work with others who share this vision, and welcome mentors who can help this vision evolve, adapt, and come alive.
When you buy our seeds you are making it possible for us to purchase the equipment that we need to grow more seeds for this community.
The Farmer Fund will go to the purchase of a Winnow Wizard, a critical piece of seed cleaning equipment, allowing them to more efficiently process seeds to sell, leading to expand production. They will also open it up to other farmers to use if they have seed that needs to be cleaned. It is easy to use, easy to clean, and a great tool to share.
Straight Up Shrooms
At Strait Up Shrooms, we see mushrooms as symbols of renewal, nourishment, and connection to the natural world. Based in Chimacum, Washington, we grow culinary and medicinal varieties in open-air beds, a shaded greenhouse, and repurposed shipping containers. Through curiosity, experimentation, and care, we transform local “waste” streams into nutrient-dense food and medicine—turning natural cycles of decay into something vibrant and life-giving.
At local farmers markets, we offer a rotating selection of mushrooms, from colorful oyster varieties to lion’s mane, shiitake, and seasonal wild finds, and we’re always experimenting with new species and growing methods. We love connecting directly with our customers and sharing knowledge, recipes, and growing tips. Whether you’re new to mushrooms or a longtime fan, we’re always happy to talk shrooms and help you discover something new.
The Farmer Fund will be used to purchase an Autoclave that will allow them to produce their own mushroom spawn – a critical component of the growing process – by sterilizing substrates locally. This will eliminate shipping costs and delays and increase production locally.
Stellar J Farm
Stellar J Farm is located on a 33-acre organic farm along Chimacum Creek, 2.5 miles south of downtown Chimacum. The farm is operated by Janet, Jeff and a small team of fabulous farmers who are enthusiastic and passionate about growing nutritious vegetables and blueberries. We incorporate chickens, ducks and geese into our farming operation to increase soil fertility, and decrease weed and pest pressure. The farm is a patchwork of small vegetable plots, pastures, fallow land, berry patches, orchards and a 9-acre riparian restoration zone. The farm is also home to Chimacum Grainary's milling, malting and baking operation.
We are committed to land stewardship practices that enhance the quality of habitat, soil, water and community. We approach farming with an ethic of curiosity, learning and growing. Our production and practices evolve as we continue to learn, reflect and adapt. We love what we do. We understand farming is hard work and we think having fun while doing it is key to sustainability.
In addition to our offerings at the Co-op, we prioritize direct-to-eater sales at the Port Townsend Farmers Market and through our CSA program. Our success is a result of support from our amazing community--THANK YOU!
The Farmer Fund will assist in the purchase of a Mini Barrel Washer, this will greatly improve their ability to efficiently and safely clean root crops, reducing labor, water use, and physical strain on their crew. It will also improve product quality and storage life, reduce losses, and increase overall farm productivity and profitability.
We want to wholeheartedly THANK our community for donating to the Farmer Fund in Support of Local Farms! We couldn’t do it without you!
Grant opportunities will be available again in fall of 2026.
The Port Townsend Food Co-op is committed to expanding the Farmer Fund and continuing to support small farms, sustainable agriculture, and food resilience.
Learn about the Farmer Fund program: https://www.foodcoop.coop/farmer-fund
