We’re proud of Washington’s small farms, proud of the shoppers who support them, and proud of the work we do to create connections among these groups to help ensure that quality, local foods continue to be available to nourish the whole community. Ever wonder about your favorite farmer or vendor’s backstory? Read on and Meet Your Farmer.

Sea Breeze Farm, with their fresh, pasture-raised meat, is not just a farmers market staple but a beloved member of the communities where they set up shop each weekend. George and Rose take pride in the friendships they’ve built with farmers market customers over the years, many of whom have known their two young children, Roman and Madrona, since before they were born. 

George’s path to farming wasn’t exactly linear. He has a degree in physics from the University of Washington, and was working as a software engineer when he purchased one little chicken that would change his life. George’s curiosity about self-sufficiency grew into a full-fledged family farm with pigs, fowl and 10 cows that roam roughly 100 acres on Vashon Island. 

Aware of how the fast food industry has coopted buzz words like "locally grown" or "natural," George and Rose refer to their method of farming as "pre-industrial, traditional, family-based agriculture." All the animals eat what they would in the wild. They are never given feed with hormones or chemicals. Sea Breeze uses pre-industrialized farming methods that were the standard for hundreds of years, including only breeding one type of cow and one type of chicken. Raising multiple breeds, one for meat and one for milk, for example, is a recent development in agriculture that can be taxing on resources and the environment.  

You can usually find this old-school farm at the University District Farmers Market and Ballard Farmers Market year-round, and the Columbia City Farmers Market seasonally. Nearly 100% of Sea Breeze Farm’s income is farmers market based. As our vendors continue to contend with a global pandemic, there are myriad ways to support market based businesses like Sea Breeze in addition to shopping at the farmers market. Keep up to date about how to support small and local at the market by signing up for our weekly Ripe + Ready email.  

Looking to do more? Read about NFM’s Good Farmer Fund, emergency relief grants for Washington Farmers, and donate today.