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About Produce with Purpose
Learn a little about the story behind food for people not profit.
IN THE NEWS: LOCAL 5 LIVE
Fresh. Local. Four seasons. It seems impossible in Wisconsin, but you are able to check all those boxes, and even have them delivered to you, with help from Produce with Purpose.
Wisconsin Foodie:
“A Small Town Reborn Through Food”
Chef Jon travels to Kaukauna to pick up a box of produce from Rick Slater at Produce with Purpose, Fox Valley’s first food hub aimed at increasing access to fresh products right from farms and artisans at a reasonable price. (starts at 5:36)
Featured in:
WISCONSIN Field to Fork:
By Lori Fredrich
Excerpt:
“Rick Slager’s father was an avid gardener, so he grew up growing food. In fact, he recalls that the
highlight of every year revolved around procuring seed catalogs and planning out the gardens for the
season.But it wasn’t until later in life, after spending much of his career running a lawn and
landscaping business that he found himself turning to farming as a second career. In fact, he
describes the decision as ‘a bit of a midlife crisis.’”
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Rick took the opportunity to travel and work in West Africa for a year. While he was there, he dipped
his toes into work with nonprofits in the agricultural sector. The experience was inspiring. But it also
made him realize that, in order to make a difference, he needed to glean real life experience in
farming to adequately equip himself for the issues faced by farmers in more remote areas. So, in
2010, he founded Produce with Purpose, a farm borne of his passion for food, his love for teaching
people how to make use of farm fresh produce and his desire to make that food accessible to
people from all walks of life.
He began with two tillable acres of his own land, renting out additional acreage as needed, and he
approached the work with a simple philosophy: put more into the soil than you take out of it and, in
doing so, you’ll create strong, healthy plants that can naturally fend off insects and disease. Along
the way, he developed an affinity for storage vegetables including carrots, specialty potatoes, beets,
parsnips and celery root. For years, he farmed as many as 21 acres, selling produce to consumers
through farmers markets as well as a traditional community supported agriculture program (CSA),
which he upgraded to a build-your-own-box model in 2015 to stay ahead of the competition. He also
built relationships with local chefs, many of whom became loyal, long-term customers. Slager credits
his relationships with chefs with providing not only as much as 75% of his yearly income, but also
collegiality and a much-needed social outlet after spending his day “in the field with the crickets.”