Ever wondered what Certified Naturally Grown is all about? In our latest CNG Field Notes, we’re talking all things CNG, straight from the folks who keep the organization running behind the scenes. We dive into CNG’s nearly 25-year, and explain why there is a real need for another certification. Listen and learn how peer-review process works, what to expect as a member, and the value of certify your business.

If you’re curious about certifications, but want it all laid out — this is the episode for you!

Check out the companion slide show here.

Timestamps:

01:50 - Staff Introductions

07:22 - The high level view of what CNG is all about.

08:39 - The history of CNG

11:09 - What is the demographic of CNG’s membership?

12:19 - The international recognition of CNG

13:45 - Certification as Representation

15:40 - How are CNG and USDA Organic similar?

17:42 - How are CNG and USDA Organic different?

21:14 - Understanding the Five Certification Types under CNG

24:24 - How do you become certified with CNG?

26:04 - Understanding the Peer Review Inspection process

30:09 - The certification process

33:36 - The marketing benefits of certification

38:33 - The benefits of CNG beyond marketing

41:53 - Breaking down the cost of certification

45:03 - What excites the staff the most about CNG

48:14 - Low pressure ways to engage with CNG

Check out our website for a list of resources mentioned in this episode, here.

And to learn more about how to certify your farm business: https://www.naturallygrown.org/why-join-cng/

By mid-summer, it can feel like every challenge on the farm arrives at once. Insects explode seemingly overnight, diseases spread through stressed crops, weeds never stop growing, and the pressure to make the "right" decision can be overwhelming. In this episode of Field Notes, Erin sits down with Daniel and Alena from Seven Springs Farm Supply to talk through how experienced growers and crop advisors approach pest and disease management: not by chasing miracle products, but by building resilient systems and making thoughtful decisions before problems ever appear.

Together, they explore the foundations of healthy crops, how to scout and diagnose issues with confidence, when intervention is actually worthwhile, and how to choose products that fit into a broader management strategy.

Timestamps:

3:10 - Alena’s origin story

7:15 - Daniel’s origin story

15:06 - Question: When you walk onto a farm that’s consistently producing healthy crops, what are you noticing?

18:06 - Question: How much does pest and disease management have to do with variety selections - are there particular questions folks should be asking seed suppliers?

21:56 - Question: What’s the benefit of having organic produce or flower seed to use in an organic system?

25:02 - Question: What you start thinking about at the beginning of the season in terms of pest and disease management?

27:41 - Question: Where can you find information about pest and disease management before you build a history on your land, so you have a better idea of what to expect?

34:35 - Question: What does an ideal scouting practice look like? What to do when you come across a problem?

40:33 - Question: What to do when you’ve never seen a pest or disease before?

47:16 - Question: What to do when your crop is getting decimated by pest and disease?

49:04 - Question: How to properly remove diseased plants?

51:40 - Question: How do you navigate the right products and inputs for your farm’s unique challenges?

58:49 - Summarizing thoughts and advice

Check out our website for a list of resources mentioned in this episode.

3:05 - Sam Blackstone’s origin story

4:11 - Sam mentions an interview he did with Peter McCoy for Salon Magazine

• Read the article here
• Check out Pete McCoy’s book here

11:29 - Learn more about the Fungi Academy in Guatemala here

19:17 - Sam talks about building is first set-up, including a cheap, DIY lab station

22:51 - Sam talks about sourcing mushrooms from the wild and propagating them

23:25 - Sam explains how he sells all of his mushrooms as a value-added product

24:57 - Sam talks about the importance of certification, especially because he’s making a concentration product

28:52 - Sam talks about the misconceptions of mushrooms

31:13 - Sam recommends resources to learn how to grow mushrooms

• Fungi Academy
• North Spore
• Fresh Cap
• Organic Mushroom Farming and Mycoreremediation by Tradd Cotter
• Growing Gourmet and Medicinal Mushrooms by Paul Stamets
• YouTube - use those other resources to learn the specific terms to search, then sift through the treasure trove of knowledge
  • Cold Water Lime Pasturization

35:23 - Sam explains his extraction process - read more about it here

35:45 - Learn more about Feral Fungi’s process here

36:43 - Learn more about ultrasonic extraction here

41:01 - Sam walks through “a week in the life” at Mindfull Mycology

45:47 - Sam discuss what happens to the byproducts of his production

47:56 - Sam talks about his branding

50:54 - Sam discusses what growing mushrooms has taught him about life

1:00:34 - Sam talks about the future of Mindfull Mycology

1:03:23 - How to follow along with Mindfull Mycology

We also want to send another huge thank you to the folks at Mushroom Mountain for making today’s episode possible. Learn more at MushroomMountain.com.

In this episode of CNG Field Notes, we sat down with chefs-turned-farmers Cory Babb and Mike Garcia to explore what it really takes to sell to restaurants. While chefs are often eager to feature seasonal, locally grown ingredients, building a successful farm-to-restaurant relationship requires more than great produce.

Cory and Mike will share insights on approaching chefs, communicating effectively, and delivering consistent quality that keeps them coming back. We’ll also dig into the challenges like coordinating deliveries, managing multiple accounts, and ensuring the sales are worth the effort. This conversation builds on themes from our ⁠Exploring New Sales Outlets⁠ class in the Business of Farming Series. If you’re looking to go deeper, the recording is available now.

Huge thank you to Earth Tools for making this episode possible! Earth Tools offers farmer-tested, high-quality walk-behind tractors and attachments built for small-scale, diversified farms. Rooted in decades of hands-on experience growing food and selling to local markets, they prioritize durable equipment, practical versatility, and exceptional service. Their tools are designed to maximize efficiency without large-scale investment, making them a trusted resource for market growers and homesteaders looking to work smarter.

Timestamps:

3:05 – Mike Garcia’s origin story

6:21 – Cory Babb’s origin story

9:12 – What are the similarities of working in a kitchen on a farm?

16:15 – What was the biggest shock transitioning to farming?

20:18 – As a farmer, how has your experience selling to chefs changed over time?

28:07 – As a chef, what are the challenges around buying from a local farm?

36:16 – What is it like for chefs and farmers to coordinate sales and deliveries?

41:13 – What does the ideal partnership look like?

47:30 – How to start selling to chefs?

49:31 – Mike describes his product sheet that he leaves with chefs.

52:20 – Cory describes his minimums and delivery fees

55:43 – What do you wish chefs knew more about farmers?

1:00:04 – What impact has your CNG certification had on your relationships with chefs?

Running a small farm means constantly thinking about how to keep the business resilient, and for a growing number of farms, opening the gates to the public has become part of that strategy. In this episode of CNG Field Notes, we talk with Jason and Larry of McLawland Farm, who’ve steadily built an agritourism operation that supports their farm year-round.

They’ve added u-pick berries, figs, and flowers, photographer partnerships, workshops, Airbnbs, and more – not all at once, but piece by piece, in ways that fit their scale and capacity. If you’ve ever wondered what it actually looks like to bring people onto your farm in a way that’s organized, profitable, and aligned with your values, McLawland Farm offers an incredible case-study.

2:35 - Origin story of McLawland Farms

5:21 - Why did they choose blueberries at their initial crop?

7:10 - How did they find their farm?

8:58 - Quick overview of what McLawland Farms looks like today

13:31 - How did they think through laying out their farm initially keeping agritourism in mind?

17:58 - What was the experience the first time folks came out to the farm? What went well, what didn’t?

24:05 - Explaining the concept of a booking system for their u-pick operation

30:49 - Explaining their U-pick flower operation

53:32 - How did they start incorporating additional agritourism offerings?

1:01:16 - Why did they choose to certify their U-pick operation?

1:06:41 - What advice would they give to folks looking to start offering agritourism experiences on their farm?

1:12:12 - What advice would they give their year-one selves?

1:13:55 - How do they hope to see McLawland Farms grow in the next 5-10 years?

Join us for a behind-the-scenes look at cooperative farming and an inspiring example of what can happen when small-scale producers build something stronger together.

Thank you again to GrownBy for making this episode possible!

GrownBy is the first free and farmer-owned software platform built for local farm sales. By seamlessly connecting growers with consumers across America, GrownBy fosters a direct and fair exchange between farmers and shoppers. Learn more ⁠here.⁠

Timestamps:

4:13 - Gabe Francisco’s origin story of Thunderfoot Farms

5:39 - Daniel and Emily’s origin story of Blooming Acres

7:17 - Origin story of A Common Pasture (ACP)

11:24 - Discussing selling wholesale vs. at market

12:49 - How they market their product as a collective

14:07 - Defining the idea of the “common”

15:33 - Discussing the business structure of the ACP

19:00 - How the financials of sales work out

21:28 - Explaining how the group plans to expand with growing demand

24:23 - How the formation of collective correlates to accessing CNG-approved feed sources

25:36 - Explaining the inestimable qualities of being apart of a collective

27:55 - How they handle uncertainties as a group

29:18 - Gabe explains how the landed on what breed of pig to raise as a collective

31:22 - What defines pasture raised pigs?

33:03 - Why did the collective land on raising pasture pigs as their main product?

35:56 - What have been the biggest challenges they’ve navigated as a group?

37:37 - Explaining how a typical ACP meeting runs

41:21 - Why did they choose to have each member farm become Certified Naturally Grown?

42:42 - Were there any significant hurdles to jump through in order to become certified?

45:55 - Explaining the benefits of working with processors as a collective vs as an individual small farm

47:27 - Discussion of pasture management for pastured pork

52:56 - Is there an animal they’d suggest starting with, if you were just getting into raising livestock?

57:27 - Where do they hope to see ACP in the next 5 years?

1:00:00 - What advice would they give to folks looking to form a collective?

1:02:00 - What advice would you give your first year farmer self?

To access the full list of resources mentioned in this episode, visit our website here.

Thank to Keene Garlic for making this episode possible!

Timestamps & Resources

2:19 - Ed’s Origin Story

7:25 - Let's start with the nitty gritty -

16:33 - Prepping soil for garlic

21:58 - Ed talks about working Cornell University to aid in research on soil health and pest management

27:42 - Adding Inputs (compost and fertilizer) to garlic beds

29:27 - Q: Do you sanitize your garlic seed or soak the seed in fertilizer before planting?

31:03 - Mulching

34:46 - Irrigation

39:37 - Monitoring the plants for pest and disease

40:55 - Ed will side dress the garlic with ⁠Chilean nitrate⁠ if he thinks it’s needed

43:05 - Dealing with garlic scapes

46:01 - Judging when to harvest

49:10 - The curing process

52:38 - Selecting seed from the harvest

55:23 - Finding sales outlets for the garlic

1:00:07 - Ed talks about focusing his operation around one main crop

1:02:02 - Q: What would Ed’s advice be for folks who want to go all in on garlic?

1:04:35 - Ed discusses his game plan for the Allium Leafminer

1:09:04 - Ed discusses why he chose to switch from certifying his operation from USDA Organic to ⁠Certified Naturally Grown⁠

1:16:01 - Q: What would Ed tell his first year farmer self?

In this episode we're joined by CNG Farmer Sam Otto, of The Woven Trifecta, and Passion Rutledge and Tomas Delgado, from the National Farm to School Network. Head to our website for the full list of resources mentioned in this episodes.

Thank you to ⁠Local Line⁠ for making this episode possible! In 2016, they launched the first version of our platform, empowering farmers to move their businesses online and accept orders from customers. Today, their suite of sales, inventory, and distribution tools is trusted by food producers across North America and beyond.

Timestamps:

• 2:00 - Origin Stories
• 9:06 - Meat and Potatoes Questions
  • 9:20 - Can you describe different ways schools source food and who are the different players for sourcing food and menu planning - where would you suggest is a good place for a farm to start seeking out these connections?
  • 14:00 - Sam talks about how she got her farm connected with a food service director.
  • 16:17 - As a direct-to-market grower - what are the best places to start seeking out these relationships?
  • 21:05 - How federal mandates around nutrition come into play when schools are sourcing food?
  • 23:03 - Truth or myth? Do you need food safety certifications or specific requirements to sell to an institution?
  • 25:30 - Do you remember some changes you had to make at your farm to meet those requirements?
  • 28:08 - If you are a small-scale farmer and you’re looking for other ways to provide food to these institutions beyond the school lunch?
  • 30:24 - Sam holds farm field trips - asked about the logistics of that, how could a farmer present that to a school - what are the liabilities?
  • 33:07 - There’s been a lot of wariness this year with funding freezes and funding loss - Can you give an overview of the impact and if there are other places to look for funding help?
• 36:15 - Questions from Field
  • 37:05 - Is there a place where a farmer can get a better understanding of the portion size requirements that schools require?
  • 41:30 - Thoughts on selling meat versus selling vegetables?
  • 43:33 - Are there solutions for selling to schools that don’t have well equipped kitchens? Or are there examples of farms who are working with co-packers or other innovators to provide ingredients to be sold as value added products, like pickles or cole slaw?
  • 46:00 - If a farm is a scale to sell directly to a school, are there examples of forward contracts or other agreements?
• 49:54 The lowdown on the ⁠10th National Farm to Cafeteria Conference⁠ coming up in December 1-4, 2025 in Albuquerque, New Mexico