Porchetta was on our Easter menu. But finding a boned pork shoulder roast (or the traditional pork belly) was proving difficult. Until I walked into the new Smokin’ Oaks Organic Farms Market on 8th Avenue South. Butcher and chef William Kruse didn’t have the exact cut, but quickly found something in the meat case that he unwrapped, cut, and rewrapped for me. This is why we love getting our meat at a butcher. They know meat. And farmer Justin Head, owner of Smokin’ Oaks Organic Farms may know it better than anyone.
As a third-generation family farmer, he grew up seeing industrial agricultural practices that he didn’t like and, by 2015, decided that he was not going to participate in them anymore. “I saw a lot of evils in farming and wanted to make a change,” Justin recalls from behind the counter at the store. And he was hell bent on making it better by going organic.
On his 1,000+ acre farm, that meant no more antibiotics, steroids, or pesticides – or the attendant energy inputs required to produce and employ them. In the process of making that change he produced “greener” meat with a reduced “hoofprint.”
But switching from industrial to organic agriculture is not easy. “It’s very hard to transition over,” Justin says. “There’s not a lot of support or resources. Matter of fact, there’s hardly any. [It’s] hard to get funding. You don’t really fit into the system, so you pretty much have to self-fund.”
Despite the challenges and risks, Justin persisted, implementing practices that earned Smokin’ Oaks its organic certification through WFCF (Where Food Comes From) Organic, a highly reputable organization. The results have been more than the healthier cattle, hogs, and chickens that Justin and his family raise for market, but even healthier soil. “We rotate our cattle and hogs along with our grain crops,” Justin says. “Animals help replenish the soil as does the entire residue of the crops, so you get organic matter to build the soil. You can see the difference. The healthier the soil, the less weed pressure.”
The meats sold at Smokin’ Oaks Organic Farms Market are straight from the farm, meaning there’s no middleman to mess things up, something all of us experienced in the supply chain over the pandemic.
William Kruse, a man with a quarter century in the natural foods industry and who wears many hats at Smokin’ Oaks – Butcher, Sales Manager, Store Manager, Chef – is passionate about providing only the highest quality, organic meats. “Go into a lot of conventional groceries and look at pork and chicken,” William says, “and often they will have water, salt, and preservatives added to increase weight and longevity and, even in some cases, compensate for poor quality. Meat should have one ingredient, and that’s meat.”
As William speaks, a woman from the surrounding neighborhood walks into the market, wanting another round of the butternut squash soup. It’s a tasty, nutritious, comforting dish. It’s also an example of how committed Smokin’ Oaks is to stocking organic foods. The squash are from Delvin Organic Farms, the cream is Hatcher Family Dairy, and the chicken broth is from Smokin’ Oaks’ organically fed chickens.
Smokin’ Oaks Organic Farms Market
2116 8th Ave S, Nashville, TN 37204
smokinoaksorganicfarms.com
@smokinoaksorganicfarms
615-649-8162
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