Edible Notables: Anneth Farm
So often we live by the mantra that “life is short.” This is a helpful perspective for many things in life, but it can also be nice to remember sometimes that “life is long.” It’s long enough to find love, have a family, get educated, and pursue multiple dreams.
That’s what Stan and Chris Vuksic have done. Chris started university in the faculty of agricultural science and worked for two summers in soil chemistry. But then she transferred to medical school, where she met her husband, Stan. The two of them spent the rest of their education in pursuit of medical careers, and then Chris worked as an emergency physician and family doctor and Stan as an anaesthetist. Their careers took them to Regina, where they raised their three children, but in 2011, the West called them home, and they returned to Vancouver Island.
Having put in decades of work in the medical field, the two decided it was time to retire and fulfill a different dream—to live more connected to the land and the food they eat. Part of this compulsion for change came during a time when Stan was diagnosed with cancer. So on May 1st, 2016, they purchased their approximately seven-acre farm in North Saanich. The timing was serendipitous, as Stan completed his treatments at the same time they moved in. “He literally convalesced in this beautiful place,” Chris reminisces.
Over the past six years, the couple has worked hard to make Anneth Farm a self-sustaining enterprise farm. “We have an approximately one-acre market garden, where we are learning about the future of local food production,” Chris explains. They started with more conventional agricultural practices but are moving to a sustainable, no-till approach to their garden using natural water conservation. “We are willing to embrace new ideas that are kind to the environment and sustainable in the face of climate change,” Stan says. Which means there’s also no chemicals used in growing their fruits and vegetables.
In addition to the produce they grow (“our favourite items are our cantaloupe, unique beans from Stan’s family and huge rows of lovely heirloom tomatoes”), they also raise a flock of sheep made up primarily of Cotswold sheep. From the sheep, they produce wool and wool products as well as lamb. This year they also began raising turkeys. Additionally, they have a small herd of Nigerian dwarf goats, whose babies are sold to families who raise them as pets. “We also host a fun activity in the spring called the ‘Wee Goattie Hour,’ where small groups can book to come relax surrounded by baby goats and drink some wine or sparkling refreshment!” adds Chris.
While the pair have never-ending work outside their door, they also make sure they have time to fully enjoy this chapter of their life. “Chris has always been a bit of a crazy dog and pony person,” Stan says, “so she loves the horses that are boarded here at the farm.” She also has a beautiful relationship with her own dressage horse named Serendipity that she trains. Their two dogs also keep things entertaining around the farm, with an Australian shepherd named Ruby (“who is the real boss around here”) and a Great Dane named Monty (“who is a big derpy lap dog”). Meanwhile, Stan loves experimenting in the kitchen and creating dishes using ingredients from their market garden. “Nothing makes him happier than preparing an entire meal from farm produce,” says Chris. He’s also discovered a love for preserving, and many of his preserves are available at their markets.
Also available at their markets is of course, their vegetables and fruit. They sell at the North Saanich Farmers’ market and once a week at their farm gate. They host online summer sales and do one market each month throughout the winter. They also subscribe to the idea of “One Bad Day” for their meat products, as they sell lamb, chicken and turkey. “We raise our animals with respect and humane treatment so that their lives are held as more than commodities. The Bad Day is the day they go to market,” explains Stan. “We use only facilities that we feel do humane slaughter.”
From their sustainable gardening to their “One Bad Day” practices and everything in between, Chris and Stan have built their business to be a reflection of themselves. “Our business brand is really the brand of who we are as individuals and embodies our own personal imperatives and ideals,” says Chris. “Those values include a real drive to promote health and prevention, to acknowledge the environmental challenges this world is facing and to accept that we (even us 60-year-olds) need to pivot and embrace the change it will take to face the future.”
The Edible Notables Series is proudly sponsored by Beacon Law Centre.
