Jena Van Wagner likes to say that she's out standing in someone else's field.
"I can go from high heels in the morning to wearing knee-high boots in the afternoon without blinking an eye," she says. And she carries a pair of muck boots in her car to prove it.
The boots are absolutely essential for her job. Van Wagner is the executive director of
MichiganFamilyFarms.com, a website community that promotes Michigan's family-owned farms. Van Wagner visits small farms regularly, and there's no telling what will greet her feet. She is in her element -- she loves what she's doing, the people she's working with and how fun the project is.
"I'm inspired by people who are passionate about what they do and sell, and have such wonderful products to offer," she says.
Two years in the making, the website sprouted from a "wouldn't it be great if…" conversation Van Wagner had with a few small farmers who were frustrated with the lack of affordable, easy-to-use options to promote their products. They didn't have the money to advertise or market themselves. And even if they did, they wouldn't know where to begin. It's not their expertise and they just don't have the time.
"A farmer can milk five cows and throw a bale of hay in the time it would take him to call someone to market his farm," says Van Wagner.
This insight coincided with another. Since Van Wagner relocated from Grand Rapids to the Traverse City area six years ago, friends had been asking her where they could pick apples, when blueberries were ready and other farm- and produce-related questions.
"Turns out I didn't know all of that information by heart, and I found it was difficult to get a comprehensive list," says Van Wagner.
And then things clicked. Van Wagner, an account executive for Grand Rapids-based Stevens Advertising, approached her boss for help.
"I told him, 'When I grow up, I want to run a farm website.' He had me write a business plan, and the rest is history," she says.
The idea is to tap into the growing market of consumers that want to be better informed about their food choices. The website's target audience is twofold. "One, anyone who farms in Michigan and sells directly to consumers," Van Wagner says. "And two, everybody who eats. With food recalls rampant, the cost of gas affecting every bite we put in our mouths and an obesity epidemic, it's time we all started caring more about what we eat. Eating food that has traveled more miles than we have isn't best for anyone."
The website, live since December 2009, serves as a one-stop shop for people seeking to purchase products, find a farmer or store, locate restaurants that use fresh ingredients, or plan vacations and daytrips. Listings and resources are searchable by products, farmers or ZIP code. The website also offers a calendar of events open to the public.
"We're working on promoting various classes for little to no expense -- using flyers, newsletters, and postings at grocery stores," says Van Wagner.
MichiganFamilyFarms.com is supported by different levels of membership and fees are based on the farmers' needs. Non-profit organizations are linked for free. The roster is rapidly growing. Van Wagner says that the site recently added five new farms in just one week.
Getting listed on the website is only one benefit. Members also get access to promotional resources like press releases, advertising photos, media contacts and informational sheets with low-cost tips on how to market and advertise. Because members share resources, each farm has a cost-effective way to have their own spot on the web and receive marketing support to drive visitors to their page and farm for a fraction of the cost of doing it on their own.
Van Wagner says that it's too early to tell how much the website is increasing business for the farmers. "We have great anecdotal testimonials," she says. "For example, one farmer got some on-TV publicity. We're trying to get farmers to identify goals and create a way to measure results."
A couponing system is also in the works.
"It's pretty exciting, and I'm not just a little bit in love with what I do," Van Wagner says. "When I meet people who don't see the value in this, I enjoy talking them into it. Personal contact is key. Then they get it."
Van Wagner, 36, has a degree in marketing and public relations from Ferris State University and 13 years of advertising experience. She works out of her basement in the bedroom community of Kingsley near Traverse City -- she calls it "Stevens North" -- and commutes to Grand Rapids one day a week.
"I need the crazy energy of agency work," she says. "I need to go five different directions to be happy."
Husband Paul, also 36, is a quality engineer at a laser company in Traverse City. They have two children, Niklas, 7, and Mara, 4.
"I have the best of both worlds," says Van Wagner. "We live on two and a half acres in a very rural and family farm-based community with farmers selling directly to consumers. I don't have to leave my office, except to drive the kids somewhere so that I can work, because you can't work at home with kids," she laughs.
Van Wagner enjoys talking about her family's visits to the grandparents.
"Grandma got out the eggs, and the kids told her those weren't chicken eggs because they weren't brown and that they had to come from the farmer around the corner," says Van Wagoner. "My kids are on a first-name basis with the local farmers."
Her advice to those just starting to make a commitment to buying locally produced food is to "be conscious of how farmers treat their animals. Start small. Be happy with the way you're eating."
Victoria Mullen is (in alphabetical order) an actress, artist, attorney, photographer and writer based in Grand Rapids. She is originally from Milwaukee, Wis.
All Photographs Courtesy of Jena Van Wagner