Our farm philosophy is to produce what we believe to be the worlds finest summer savory and use it to create great food products! We believe that in doing this we are serving our neighbours and God. We are committed to helping our neighbours and have done so in our own community, and abroad by assisting Farmers Helping Farmers' efforts in Kenya. For more information about this program, visit www.farmershelpingfarmers.ca
Here in the beautiful Annapollis Valley of Nova Scotia we are pleased to be growing excellent summer savory and using it to create the flavors of the Maritimes in our spice mixtures;
Jacoba and Bram Lohr, came from Holland in 1958 and started farming here on this farm in 1960. Farmer John's Herbs has evolved and today we have three generations of family working together. We have been wonderfully supported by the public and the grocery stores of the region. Our goal is to bring you the flavours of the Maritimes through our summer savory and many spice mixes. We are a certified organic processor and use mostly organic herbs in our spice mixtures.
Our savory is harvested and dried in August and September and sold year round. The savory, actually Summer Savory - Saturna hortensis, began for us on a very small scale in 1979 as a fundraiser for a ladies' group in our church. The following year, the ladies bowed out and my father began to employ modern farming methods and mechanized drying to produce the crop. He also began to build the specialized machinery needed to handle, dry and process the crop. Inventing and reinventing machinery has been his work and passion to this very day. His goal has always been to produce the finest quality savory possible.
In 1999 we purchased T.C. Wile Enterprises, a savory packaging and distribution company, from T.C. himself. Prior to 1999 we had supplied T.C.Wile with savory and as our ability to produce had increased, so had T.C.’s market. We now package and distribute savory to over 200 customers in Atlantic Canada. The search for complementary products and distribution efficiency led us to investigate organic herbs. We are currently certified with TransCanada Organic Certification and now package 30 organic herbs and spices.
Over the past few years my wife, Heather, and I have built the Farmer John's Herbs brand to be what it is today. We love sharing our story and take pride in the fact that our products can be found at most major retailers and many independent stores throughout Atlantic Canada. Fast forward a few years and you'll now find two of our sons, Justin and Aaron, at the helm of our farm. The third generation is now working hard to get Farmer John's Herbs products into more kitchens across the globe.
- Farmer John