October 20, 2015 – The fresh sauerkraut company started by Kathryn Lukas in Santa Cruz in 2008 has just completed a big move to its new home in Watsonville, where there’s a renovated 29,000 sq ft production facility, 19 acres of farmland and an old farmhouse that fits perfectly with the brand Farmhouse Culture. “I’ve always dreamt that we could have our production out on the farm. It feels so real, so authentic to be close to the fields, where we can smell the dirt and watch people cultivate the fields,” says Lukas.
“I used to say that we get our produce from within 20 miles of the company, now I can say we get it from within 5 miles,” she adds. “It is so inspiring to be here at our new farm, surrounded by fields and to know our process from farm to ferment is now seamless.”
The transition began at the Eco Farm Conference in Pacific Grove in 2014. Lukas had already found the farm she wanted—as EMB reported exclusively in our fall 2014 issue—but she couldn’t afford to buy it. So Lukas asked Dick Peixoto of Lakeside Organic Gardens for help. He was already Farmhouse Culture’s largest supplier of organic produce and agreed to partner on the new property.
Peixoto purchased the Lewis Road farm and is leasing the production facility back to Farmhouse Culture. Both companies participated in a major renovation of the building, adding a temperature perfect fermentation room, processing room and offices. The building features an innovative grey water system that allows wastewater to be used in the fields. The farmland will be transitioned to organic over the upcoming year and go into rotation with Lakeside’s other Watsonville properties.
“We couldn’t be in a better place in the world for our type of fermentation, thanks to the incredible climate and year around availability of organic produce,” says Lukas.
The new fermentation facility and easy access to Lakeside cabbage will allow Farmhouse to expand production to meet growing demand for probiotic-rich fermented foods across the nation. Farmhouse Culture is the number one organic sauerkraut producer in the country. They also make a line of fermented juices called “gut shots,” which are said to aid digestion and enhance gut health.
But Lukas is most excited about the farmhouse on the property, which she’ll begin renting on November 1st. After repairs and a new paint job, the classically trained chef plans to install a test kitchen where she can experiment with new products. She’ll also add a photo studio for food shoots and a dining room where she can host visitors and conduct taste tests.
She plans to plant a garden around the farmhouse and install beehives to make it a fully functioning homestead.
Four varieties of Farmhouse Culture sauerkraut—Smoked Jalapeno, Classic Caraway, Garlic Dill Pickle, Horseradish Leek—and Spicy Wakame Ginger Kimchi are available nationwide at Whole Foods, Sprouts, Costco and numerous independent natural foods stores, like New Leaf Community Market.
To grow the business to the next level, Lukas has recently brought on three new executives, including: Chief Operating Officer Capp Culver, formerly of Taylor Farms; Sales Director Heather Dean, who has worked on brands such as Kettle Foods, Organic Valley and Numi Teas; and Marketing Director Jason Prziborowski, formerly with H. J. Heinz Company.
About the author
Deborah Luhrman is publisher and editor of Edible Monterey Bay. A lifelong journalist, she has reported from around the globe, but now prefers covering our flourishing local food scene and growing her own vegetables in the Santa Cruz Mountains.
