Naperville woman planting seeds for organic farm network
With her idea for Veterans Victory Farm, Veronica Porter wanted to start an organic farm in Naperville and eventually have it serve as a distribution hub for other small growers in the area.
But the Naperville location she was eyeing is no longer for sale, so she's launching the new business in reverse. Starting with a 5-acre farm in the Sugar Grove area and potentially a 10-acre site in Oswego, Porter said she's ready to create connections among growing sites "from the outside in."
"It may not be the original business plan, but it's still a workable plan," said Porter, who has a culinary license and runs a small organic cafe called Aunt V's inside the LA Fitness on Freedom Drive in Naperville. "I have a few smaller locations, but we can still start growing."
This week, Porter, 56, plans to start planting crops such as peas, lettuce, radishes, tomatoes, peppers, squash and herbs at a rented piece of farmland near where Sugar Grove meets North Aurora and Batavia.
She's launching the farm to provide jobs for veterans, especially those with traumatic brain injuries or post-traumatic stress disorder, and for other people with what she calls "hidden disabilities." But just as important to her is the potential to preserve farmland, produce local food and contribute to the Naperville economy through the growing organic food industry.
"What we're doing is sustainable agriculture to create sustainable lives," Porter said. "We have some of the best farmland in the Midwest in this area, so we really just have a lot of potential."
Porter is seeking investors to buy stock in a 10-acre site in Oswego, which she hopes will become Veterans Victory Farm's second location. And she's still got her eye on a farm in Naperville, where she imagines organic produce grown at her sites and others that use "the same growing principles" could be sold.
She says creating such a "food hub" could make things easier on small growers, who otherwise would have to take their produce to Chicago for it to be sold on the market, and for grocers, restaurateurs or average people with a passion for local food.
"A big thing in our industry now is you see a lot of locally sourced produce and organic produce, which we're trying to get into," said Dan Casey, owner of Casey's Foods in Naperville. "But we're an independent store; the supply chain and delivery of consistent organic or local produce can be a challenge sometimes."
From what he's heard, Casey said Veterans Victory Farm sounds like it could be a good source for his store at 124 W. Gartner Road to buy some local foods. He said he's meeting with Porter this week to find out more. Anyone interested in buying stock in the company should visit veteransvictory.com.
"This would be a natural for us," Casey said. "We'd be able to run over or have delivered some products and also help out Veronica with a great cause."