Today we’d like to introduce you to Jen and Chris Anderson.
Hi Jen and Chris, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
We bought our farm in 2015! It had been vacant for a decade and needed a lot of work to move in. Our family of six lived in an airstream while we made the house livable and then started working towards of our vision of a local Lavender and Flower farm selling all of our own farm goods and handmade lavender products. Our vision has morphed over the past seven years to include fiber products from our sheep and alpaca herd and a second farm, which we are developing into a sustainable farm with produce and lavender and an epicenter of community, ecotourism and events! We hope to bring the community, local artists and farmers all together and offer a beautiful setting in which to have a wedding, corporate event or farm-to-table dinner!
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
The largest obstacle is the sheer amount of physical labor and the availability of affordable labor in Boulder. The largest hurdle has been working with our local government to be able to do what we want and farm like we want.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Balto Farms/ Boulder Lavender?
Our Farm, Balto Farms has many branches! Boulder Lavender is our lavender product line that is all grown, harvested, distilled (essential oils) and made right here on our farm from ingredients mostly grown here as well. Boulder Woolies is our line of fiber products including yarns, socks, hats and mittens from our alpaca herd. Harvest House is the name of our second 20-acre farm just four miles east of Downtown Boulder where we hold events and grow an array of beautiful flowers and produce with our neighbor farm, MASA Seed Foundation. We are super proud of the fact that we have limited farm background until 8 years ago and we learned and taught ourselves how to grow, how to make our own fertilizer called Bokashi Tea, how to be beekeepers and the owners of five horses, a herd of alpaca and sheep and a gaggle of dogs and chickens. We adopted an entirely new lifestyle to become more self-sufficient and environmentally conscientious!
We’d be interested to hear your thoughts on luck and what role, if any, you feel it’s played for you?
I do believe that being lucky but also being smart and making good decisions plays a part in everyone’s success. Chris and I have both owned several businesses and have made plenty of mistakes, but look at those a huge learning experience. Each step has taken us down a different path which has led us to where we are today – some luck and a lot of hard work!
Contact Info:
- Website: 7957farm.com
- Instagram: 7957farm
- Facebook: Colorado king shepherds
Image Credits
Darcy Kiefel Kiefel Photography
