supplyinggoodnessOur growing appetite for local and organic produce and poultry is being fed by a new generation of young farmers who are committed to sustainable agriculture. By KATHY WEISSPhotos by DAVID SCRIVNER38 room JUNE 2012

roomJUNE 2012 39One of them is Eric Menzel of Salt Fork Farms near Solon, who with his wife, Eve, embraces the challenge of living off the land.The Menzels raise chickens and cultivate a range of organic fruits and vegetables that they sell at farmers markets. They also supply Iowa City restaurants Motley Cow Cafe, Hamburg Inn and the Trumpet Blossom Café, along with Deluxe Bakery, where they host a neighborhood farmers market on the front patio every Saturday from 9 a.m. to noon. While Eve has a full-time job with the Iowa Donor Network in North Liberty, she also devotes time to the never-ending chores on their five-acre farm, located on Sutliff Road. Even little Milo, 2, serves a role that no one else can do better: He climbs into the hen wagon to fetch the eggs. ?OSome 600 hens and roosters are raised at Salt Fork Farms near Solon including Delawares, White Speckles Sussex, New Hampshire Reds and Barred Plymouth Rocks.