Author Archives: Sylvia Burgos Toftness

About Sylvia Burgos Toftness

A Latina baby boomer from the tenements of the South Bronx, I now raise 100% grass-fed beef in west-central Wisconsin with my husband Dave. We believe more people will choose to farm and eat healthful foods if they know the connections between what we eat and how it's grown. That's why we invite you to walk the fields with us; hear from experts on my Saturday morning show, Deep Roots Radio; share our adventures on my blog, From the Bronx to the Barn; and buy our sustainably-grown beef. We farm with a tiny carbon hoofprint (R) so that you can enjoy great-tasting grass-fed beef that's high in nutrition while helping to restore our environment.

Three Wisconsin women farmers battle to legalize sale of home-baked goods

Deep Roots Radio
Deep Roots Radio
Three Wisconsin women farmers battle to legalize sale of home-baked goods
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In this Deep Roots Radio interview, Lisa Kivirist describes the multi-year battle to legalize the sale of home-baked goods in the state Wisconsin. The Badger state has been one of only two in the entire country that has not permitted the sale of home-baked muffins, cookies and breads.
Lisa is one of three women farmers who sued the state in this effort, and recently won a state Judge’s declaration that the ban against the sale of home-baked goods is unconstitutional.Her sister champions in this effort are Dela Ends (Scotch Hill Farm) and Kriss Marion (Circle M Farm and Bed & Breakfast).
Lisa is an assertive champion of women farmers and their ability to build their farm-based businesses. The author of several books on eco-entrepreneurship, she and her husband run the award-winning Inn Serendipity Farm and Bread and Breakfast in southern Wisconsin.
I hope you enjoy this lively interview.
Sylvia

French sourdough boules

Peace Coffee: serving up great taste, social justice, environmental stewardship cup after cup

Deep Roots Radio
Deep Roots Radio
Peace Coffee: serving up great taste, social justice, environmental stewardship cup after cup
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Drink coffee? One, two, three cups a day? Now multiply that simple act by several hundred million people every day. It’s hard to imagine the mountain of coffee beans needed to satisfy that thirst. Now, consider that those beans could work not only to create delicious brews, but also to produce a fair wage for farmers half way around the world.

This is the reality for at least a small percentage of coffee harvested for the American market because of Peace Coffee, a firm headquartered in a city you might now automatically associate with the tropical coffee bean – Minneapolis, Minnesota. In this Deep Roots Radio interview, Peace Coffee CEO (and Queen Bean) Lee Wallace describes the business’s unorthodox beginnings in 1996 and its steady growth since then.

Yes, every cup of coffee you buy could help farmers move from poverty to a living wage.

I hope you enjoy the interview.

Sylvia

One of the varieties of Peace Coffee


The benefits of sourdough breads of ancient grains w Therese Asmus

Deep Roots Radio
Deep Roots Radio
The benefits of sourdough breads of ancient grains w Therese Asmus
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I hope you enjoy this Deep Roots Radio interview with Therese Asmus, of Artistta Homestead, is a long-time baker and teacher dedicated to the nutritional and flavorful benefits of sourdough breads made with ancient grains. She shares research and insights into the nutritional differences among ancient grains and contrasts their digestibility with commercially varieties.

Loaves made with ancient grains


She says many customers who can’t tolerate goods baked with conventional varieties can now enjoy bread again.
Sylvia

New calf, sights and sounds from Bull Brook Keep

https://youtu.be/n99_AGseU1o?list=PLvGsp7AWEduBkWoUbLoFme7Fh_5mKxWpySpring has arrived on Bull Brook Keep. We greeted our first calf, a little bull, yesterday morning. He’s now tagged #82, and he the cow are doing fine.
I’ll be at the CSA Fair at the Farm Table Restaurant in Amery, WI tomorrow afternoon, March 25, 12noon-4:00.
I thought you might enjoy some pics and videos, old and new, from the farm. This brief slide show includes a short video clip of the new calf.
I hope to see you at the Fair.

Sylvia

3/18/17, 9-9:30AM CT Deep Roots Radio – live w Iowa City Millet Seed urban farm -small scale cover cropping

What: Deep Roots Radio interview with Jon Yagla, co-owner/operator of The Millet Seed urban farm, Iowa City
When: Saturday, March 18, 2017 9:00-9:30AM Central Time
Where: Broadcast on WPCA Radio 93.1 FM and streamed live at www.wpcaradio.org
Why: Operating a small-scale urban farm complete with seasonal plantings and cover-cropping and no tractor!

I hope you’ll tune in!

Sylvia

BueLingo cattle relax as the sun and mist rise

Our BueLingo cattle thrive not only in the warmth of summer, but in every season. They walk the pastures, and get fresh air and water every day of the year. This helps them stay healthy and contented, and helps produce great-tasting beef with high nutritional content.

Dave and I manage our herd and farm in harmony with nature – farming with a tiny carbon hoofprint (R).

We hope you’ll come visit us at Bull Brook Keep, home of 100% grass-fed beef. We’re a beautiful ride from the Minneapolis/St. Paul metro area.

Sylvia

David S. Cargo: community ovens and classes to build portable wood-fired ovens

Podcast
Podcast
David S. Cargo: community ovens and classes to build portable wood-fired ovens
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Always dreamed of pulling crisp, bubbling pizzas from your own wood-fired oven? Whether you live on a city lot or out in the country, David S. Cargo can show you how to build a portable oven in just a couple of hours. No special tools required. You’ll leave the class with know-how, new friends, and having enjoyed some freshly made pizza, pita and naan. Ya can’t beat just-baked artisan breads.

I hope you enjoy this Deep Roots Radio interview with David S. Cargo, professional baker, community oven enthusiast, and popular instructor. He’ll be holding his hands-on classes in five states this year, including Minnesota and Wisconsin. You can find his class schedule on his website, here.

Sylvia

A couple of newly constructed ovens

Rancher Gabe Brown on regenerative, holistic farming on any scale, and profitability even in transition

Deep Roots Radio
Deep Roots Radio
Rancher Gabe Brown on regenerative, holistic farming on any scale, and profitability even in transition
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I hope you enjoy this Deep Roots Radio interview with North Dakota rancher Gabe Brown on the principles of regenerative farming that will yield health and profitability even as you transition your operation – large or small.

Gabe will be in Amery, Wisconsin February 9th for a full day workshop in which he will describe how he, wife and son have worked to transform their 2,000-acre, diversified farm to a healthy, profitable business while improving soil and regenerating the landscape. In addition to raising and direct-marketing grass-fed beef and other livestock, Gabe grows and sells cash crops from his sustainable farm.

Go to hungryturtle.net to register for the workshop. I hope to see you there!

Sylvia

Andrew French-about breeding/raising happy heritage cross pigs on pasture w/o hormones, antibiotics

Deep Roots Radio
Deep Roots Radio
Andrew French-about breeding/raising happy heritage cross pigs on pasture w/o hormones, antibiotics
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I hope you’ll enjoy this Deep Roots Radio interview with Andrew French about breeding and raising heritage-cross pigs in the frigid Wisconsin climate. Andrew is owner/farmer of Full Boar Farm13567341_1045922135462087_1991272975066190573_n-2 in Boyceville, Wisconsin, and a frequent contributor about sustainable farming to magazines such as ACRES USA.
His objectives? Happy, healthy pigs; restoring the land; and, producing great-tasting pork.

Sylvia

American Public Media on Bull Brook Keep – about un-retiring to the farm

As Dave and I look forward to 2017, and look back on the several few years, I again appreciate an interview I did with American Public Media’s Chris Farrell last year.
Chris’ program is about unretirement – what people are planning and doing as they retire from one career and move into the next part of their lives.
SummerIconThanks again, Chris, for visiting Bull Brook Keep and for considering the values David and I strive to live as we’ve made that shift from our city-based careers to our farm-anchored lives.
I hope you enjoy this interview. Bonus: the episode ends with Dessa’s “Beekeeper.”
You can find out lots more about Chris’s program, resources and other interviews at Facebook.com/unretirement.
And, I trust you will have an absolutely wonderful New Year!
Sylvia