Two Chicks Farm began as a vegetable farm in Hillsborough in 2008. Farmers Debbie Donnald and Audrey Lin had moved to North Carolina from Texas. Debbie had worked at a plant nursery where she learned about organic growing; they knew they wanted to start some kind of farm. When they discovered the Triangle’s active local food movement, they decided to grow food.
When they first started farming, they used the slower winter months to focus on production of their preserves: fermented krauts and kimchis, pickled vegetables, and their infamous pepper jelly. Eventually, they ramped up production of their fermented vegetables and preserves and moved production to a kitchen space in town; a grant helped them purchase the equipment needed to increase production and branch out from selling only at farmers’ markets. Several of their products received recognition in the Good Food Awards, national awards that recognize food entrepreneurs that produce delicious food that is respectful of the environment.
In 2016, Debbie and Audrey were contemplating retirement and struggling to find a buyer for their business. Local food advocate Jenna Monk heard that Two Chicks’s kraut and preserve business was for sale and began a yearlong process of working with, and eventually purchasing the business from, Debbie and Audrey. The award-winning recipes have been augmented with Jenna’s new creations, and this vibrant, local business thrives!