David and Emily Boynton always dreamed of living in a log cabin and growing their own food. Now they’re living that dream, log cabin and all, on five acres in Pittsboro called Fiddlehead Farm.
They moved to the Triangle in 2003, and Emily worked with the children at SEEDS, growing a garden and selling at the Durham Farmer’s Market. After a few years they moved to the country with the plan of growing vegetables for a farmer’s market, supplemented with baked goods made in their certified kitchen. Customers began seeking out their baked goods, and then their jams and other value-added goods. Eventually, all their produce was becoming other products, and they were buying additional ingredients (like fruit) from other farmers. They still work part-time off the farm, while making a steady supply of jams and other goodies for several farmer’s markets and stores.
David and Emily are committed to using local and/or organic ingredients, for the well-being of their own family, the earth, and their customers. They use local, in-season produce, buying organic (when available) or from farmers with sustainable methods. Non-local items like citrus and cranberries are organic. The sources of these ingredients are listed on each label. Farmer partners include T5 Farm in Liberty (strawberries), Granite Springs Farm in Pittsboro (baby ginger and garlic), Ayrshire Farm (now In Good Heart Farm) in Pittsboro (organic blueberries, apples, garlic, and onions), and many more; they also buy fruit from family friends back in Michigan. (You can see the whole list on their website.) Sugar and lemon juice are also organic, and the local co-ops (including us!) help the farm source them in bulk. The jams, jellies, and preserves are made without pectin, meaning they are dense with fruit, and are made in batches of eight to ten jars.
The Boyntons put hard work and love into each jar, and as Emily says, it brings them great joy. Visit Fiddlehead Farm online at http://www.fiddleheadnc.com/ and look for their jams in our stores.