Polyface, Inc

Polyface, Inc. is grassfarming guru Joel Salatin's family farm. Nestled in Virginia's Shenandoah Valley, the farm was launched in 1961 by Joel's health-conscious parents. The family has never used chemical fertilizers, pesticides, or herbicides, making this one of the oldest environmentally friendly farms in the United States. Polyface has been the working model for many of the farms in this directory and has been featured on ABC News and in the Smithsonian magazine.

Four hundred families and numerous restaurants rely on Polyface for salad bar beef, eggs from free-ranging hens, ready-to-lay pullets, and pastured chickens, turkeys, rabbits and pigs. Some customers drive 300 miles round trip to pick up their products.

It may be inconvenient for customers to have to drive to the farm, but there's a hidden benefit: they get to see exactly how their food was raised. Children may benefit the most. According to Joel, "Kids enjoy seeing and petting the animals, romping in the fields, and learning firsthand who, what, where, when, why, and how their food was made."