FOLLOW YOUR FOOD

Second-generation farmer Wayne has his family farm on California's central coast — the same farm that Wayne's father started back in 1959. For Wayne, chicken farming has been a lifelong passion, a chance to put his values, his skills and his sense of honor (and the honorable treatment of animals) to work.

Wayne joined a group of progressive, equally uncompromising chicken farmers back in 1973 as a way to combat the volatility taking place in the larger-scale chicken production market. Being part of this group gives him the stability he needs, the family-oriented approach to doing business that he appreciates and the freedom to do what comes naturally — raise his animals in sunshine and open spaces without antibiotics, added hormones or growth enhancers.

Ask Wayne, and he'll tell you that farming is a great way to raise a family. It allowed him to be home when his three kids left for school in the morning and to be there when they came home in the afternoon. Plus, they got to experience what life on a farm is all about — hard work, passion and pride.

The Critical Link.

Farmers are a critical link for how food gets to our plate — we honor and respect their work, recognizing that they play a unique role in our food system. They are some of the hardest working folks we know, rising before the sun and adjusting their work pattern according to the weather — no easy feat when we think about climatic variations!

Strengthening the Connection.

We aspire to build strong relationships with our farmers — getting to know who they are, what matters to them, and therefore why this matters to the food that we make. We want to strengthen the connection between farmer and consumer.