4 things to know about Glenview Acres, a pasture-based farm in Tuscarawas Township

TUSCARAWAS TWP. − The honeymoon phase for Jen and Joe Lautzenheiser included starting a pasture-based farm. The couple married in 2018 and quickly got to work building and growing Glenview Acres.

The farm is a full-time job for Jen, 30, who previously was an accountant. Joe, 28, works full time as an electrician for now, with plans to transition to full time on the farm. Farmers essentially have no weekends off, Jen said, noting that weekends are the busiest for the couple since Joe is home then.

Glenview Acres is a pasture-based farm, focused on letting the animals graze on the lands instead of being boxed in en masse. This is a new way of farming that puts the emphasis on the health of everything — from the soil to the grass to the animal to the consumer. The cattle, hogs, chickens and sheep are happy here — and so is the soil they eat and frolic on.

I caught up with Jen and Joe to get a tour of the farm and learn more. Here are four things to know about Glenview Acres:

1. This farm is unlike conventional farms

“Glenview Acres is a pasture-based farm. In contrast to conventional farms, we don’t raise our animals in confinement barns, but instead, raise them in nature, giving them fresh air, sunshine and all the grass they can eat,” Jen said.

They raise cattle, sheep, pigs and chickens, moving them daily to fresh grass to maximize the health of the soil and the animals.

“Ultimately, our passion is providing our local community with the healthiest, pasture-based protein you can find,” she said.

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Conventional farms care about speed over health, and the “consequences are our health,” Joe said.

At Glenview, the process connects the soil, animals and customers, and it’s “very different from the conventional way,” he said.

Glenview is one of the only farms in the county utilizing this technique to this extent.

2.  The owners both had ties to farms

“I was first introduced to this way of farming by my dad,” Jen said. “We moved to a farm when I was in middle school and began raising animals on pasture, practicing rotational grazing on a very small scale. That’s where my love for farming began — caring for animals and seeing them on pasture, enjoying the environment they were designed for.”

In her late teens, her love of farming grew into a greater awareness of the health benefits of pasture-based proteins. She took note of what she was eating and where it was coming from.

Joe’s family owned a farm and had been renting it out for generations, but never farming it themselves. When he was in competitive sports in high school, he started researching nutrition and found out about the benefits of grass-fed protein.

Combining his interest in nutrition with the land already ready to farm, “he began envisioning transforming the conventionally run family farm into a pasture-based, regenerative operation that had the ability to heal both the soil and people,” Jen said.

These passions for farming developed about the same time the couple started dating, and by the time they got married, “we were ready to dive straight in to farming.”

3. They work with nature instead of against it

“The more we read and learned, the more passionate we became about working with and not against nature,” Jen said, noting that conventional farming methods cause erosion, usually involve inhumane treatment of animals and heavily rely on harmful chemicals.

“We wanted to farm in a life-giving way that actually improved the health of soil, animals and people — that led us to regenerative, pasture-based farming. After only five years, we’ve seen the health of pastures transformed, and it’s been immensely encouraging to see firsthand that this way of farming really works,” she said.

During the tour, Joe often mentioned that they work to keep the farm a healthy, stress-free environment for the animals.

“Healthy land, healthy animals, healthy people is what we strive for,” Joe said.

He said the farm is set up so that the animals prune the grass, which helps the soil stay strong. But the animals are moved regularly, so the grass isn’t depleted.

“The cattle needs the grass, and the grass need the cattle,” he said.

4. They sell more than just grass-fed beef

Along with 100% grass-fed beef, Glenview Acres sells 100% grass-fed lamb and pasture-raise pork, chicken and eggs.

“Since they’re omnivores, we supplement our pigs’ and chickens’ pasture diet with organic, non-GMO grain,” Jen said. “Something that sets us apart from other producers is our use of organic non-GMO grain. Most other pasture-based farms just feed non-GMO — not organic — but we’re committed to organic, since harmful chemicals are still often sprayed on non-organic grains — even the non-GMO crops. We don’t want any of those chemicals making their way onto our customers’ plates.”

Customers can purchase from the farm store at 1649 Manchester Ave. SW in Tuscarawas Township or place an order online and select a pickup location, including a new monthly pickup at the Fedorko Chiropractic Health Center parking lot at 4774 Munson St. NW in Jackson Township.

Glenview Acres is also launching shipping within Ohio by the end of July. Orders will be shipped in insulated boxes and will arrive frozen.

For more information on placing orders, visit glenviewacres.com.

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This article originally appeared on The Repository: 4 things to know about Glenview Acres, a pasture-based farm in Stark