COIL Stories

Winterhill Farm and Garden:

Sustainably expanding operations to grow more local & nutritious food

Winterhill Farm and Garden logo
Farmer working on the field with fresh greens at Winterhill Farm & Garden

Winterhill Farm and Garden draws on regenerative agricultural practice to provide their community with access to nutritious, local food. They specialize in organic vegetables, pastured chicken, eggs, and beef, and even have a sustainable sawmill. Their products get delivered directly to customers, shortening the supply chain and offering produce at their peak of freshness. With the support of COIL Evolve Circular Accelerator (COIL Evolve), Winterhill Farm and Garden is working to expand their market garden.

Electrical panel attached to wooden posts and installed at Winterhill Farm and Garden

The Impact

 

Expanding operations: Winterhill Farm and Garden is installing a new electrical panel to expand their operation. This new panel will allow safe and stable power to their nursery, brooder house, winter chicken quarters, and farm stand.

Satisfying customer demand: Features of the COIL Evolve program, including mentorship, aided Winterhill Farm and Garden in developing a sustainable framework while satisfying the increasing demand for their products. The new power source enables them to increase the amount and quality of plants generated in a season.

Prioritizing safety: As a small business, Winterhill Farm and Garden was initially focused on getting their business off the ground. Support from COIL Evolve allowed them to invest more into ensuring safety in all aspects for staff and volunteers as they expand their operations.

How they made it work

The funding and support from COIL Evolve helped Winterhill Farm and Garden to strengthen the foundation of their business infrastructure. Safe and stable power is a requirement for expansion. With circularity and regeneration still at the core of their business model, Winterhill Farm and Garden will now be able to increase efficiency and grow their operations.  

Installing a stable power source to their nursery and greenhouse not only allows for the consistent production of more food, but it also prevents challenges that come with unreliable power. Unreliable power from extension cords leads to power failure through tripped breakers and may overheat plants in the summer. 

Since this new power source means increased production per season, Winterhill Farm and Garden is working with their COIL Evolve mentor to explore opportunities for increasing revenue streams and collaboration opportunities.  

“Upcycling is not just something nice you do, or a marketing thing. It’s a real opportunity for businesses.We have a regenerative farm and while it is a lot of work and can be stressful at times, it is extremely satisfying. So, our advice to anyone looking to start their own regenerative farm is research as much as you can and then just go for it. When it’s sink or swim, you end up swimming way harder and faster than you thought you could” – Nathan Smith, Co-owner of Winterhill Farm and Garden 

Carrots, kale, radishes, lettuce, and garlic from Winterhill Farm and Garden
Funded by the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario