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Business Insider: Cowpots

by Kristen Panzer

Talk about making the most of what you have. You know, when life gives you lemons make lemonade and all that. I’m talking about a family, a family of farmers, so enterprising, so optimistic that when life gave them a lagoon full of manure they turned it into flowerpots. Really. A process so innovative, so leading edge, they patented it. And they sell their little pots all over the country and in Europe. People want them because they’re green. Well, they’re brown because they are made from manure but they are eco-friendly and sustainable. People also want them because you can start your seedlings in them and put them right into the ground in the pot. The pot will dissolve and become food for the seedling. But I think people also want them because they are genius! That’s why I want them. I’m talking about Freund’s Farm in East Canaan. I’m talking about Cowpots.

Cowpots are clean and safe to handle. They are baked at high temperatures which kills all the nasty stuff you might expect would be lurking in a cow pie. Rest assured, Freunds’ follow rigorous quality control standards. And Cowpots don’t smell, except maybe earthy or natural. The Freund’s patented process composts the stink right out of them. In fact, hold a Cowpot in your hand for the first time and you would be hard pressed to know from whence it came. Paper? Cardboard? Soil? Nope, manure!

I had the pleasure of sitting down at the Freunds’ farm table and shooting the—ahem! —discussing manure with Amanda Freund, an exceptional young woman and a gracious, thoughtful and passionate advocate for her industry. “It’s the peak of the season right now,” Amanda told me. “We’re in production round the clock and Cowpots are shipping out from here every day by the truckload.” Amanda spoke of the Freund’s Farm ethic of transparency and the pride her family takes in opening their farm to visitors. Above all, Amanda spoke of gratitude. “Our success is a testament to the support we’ve gotten locally,” she told me. She credits local lawmakers, the people of the Northwest Corner, other farmers and the USDA seed money they were granted to purchase equipment to manufacture Cowpots.

The Freunds welcome visitors to the farm in season, April to December, weather permitting. Bring the kids. Buy something tasty in the bakery café and stroll the grounds. Have a look around. But do not be fooled by the farm’s homey, humble appearance. “We look like a run of the mill dairy farm,” Amanda said. “but with a methane digester, the innovation of our waste removal—that’s the Cowpots—500 solar panels and the largest herd in the state of rotationally grazed cows, this is the leading edge of farming.”

berkshirestyle.canaan
www.freundsfarmmarket.com

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