Second Generation Organic — Josh and Noah Engel

Crawford County, Wisconsin

At the crossroads of a pair of two-lane country roads in Wisconsin’s Crawford County stands the building that once housed the Star Valley Creamery. There used to be little dairies like this one everywhere collecting milk from local farmers and bottling it for sale in nearby towns and cities. But the economic pressures that have driven thousands of small family farms out of business since the 1970s have in turn squeezed out the small community dairies. The Star Valley Creamery, like so many others, has been closed for years—a lonesome reminder of better times in rural America.

Today there’s new life at the little creamery. Josh and Noah Engel, two brothers who grew up raising organic vegetables, recently signed a lease on the building, which they’re using as a wash house and storage unit for their thriving organic vegetable farm.

“There’s been some curiosity about what we’re up to,” says Josh, 25, the older of the brothers. A small market stand out front has brought a few sales. “Everyone seems happy to see something going on here.” The creamery, with a small crew of young employees processing vegetables inside, has become a new symbol of hope for a return to a sustainable model of agriculture that supports local economies.