Direct-to-consumer model sustains Foggy Bottoms Boys for six generations

Diversification is the name of the game at Nicholson Livestock Partnership. Customers can find dairy products, eggs, lamb, wool items, beef, goats and pigs at the sixth-generation family farming operation in Ferndale, California.

Known to locals and social media alike as Foggy Bottoms Boys, the operation is complex with multiple species needing daily care. The diversified income streams allow the farm to be more resilient and weather the ups and downs of the market.

The core of the operation, however, is a 100-cow grazing Jersey herd that the Nicholson family has milked in the foggy bottoms of the Eel River Valley since the 1860s.

“Getting up every day, milking cows at 3 a.m., farming, doing all these crazy things that we do, it comes out of this love for the land, the love for farming, for the community,” said Cody Nicholson Stratton, co-operator at Foggy Bottoms Boys.

For the community

Cody didn’t always plan to come back to the family farm. He considered going to law school and practicing agricultural law after college, but his passion for agriculture and the family legacy brought him back to Humboldt County.

Cody’s husband Thomas shared his passion for agriculture, and together with Cody’s family they have built a sustainable business that is good for their land, their family, and their community.

“My motivation comes from four generations of 4-H, where the motto is to make the best better,” Thomas said. “Waking up every day to realize that we’re feeding people in every aspect, whether that’s another audit that needs to be performed or a form that needs to be filled out for the bank, is that each action is leading to making sure people are fed.”

One way the Foggy Bottoms Boys are feeding their community is at their ice cream shop, Jersey Scoops, in Loleta, California. The store offers consumers a tangible way to interact with the product and uniquely connect to agriculture.

Before their direct-to-consumer model, the family sold all of their milk to Rumiano Cheese. And while the majority of their milk is still made into cheese, ice cream has offered the enterprise a way to get a little more for their product.

“If we didn’t have that added value, we probably wouldn’t exist in the same way that we do today,” Thomas said.

For the land

Cody described the operation as a multi-species, regenerative demonstration farm. Their location on the Northern California coastline means they have a temperate climate that is ideal for growing grass and grazing animals. Just like ice creams adds value to their milk product, grazing cows and sheep adds value to the grass.

“We have the ability to feed each other in this magical place that not a lot of other people have the opportunity to do,” Thomas said.

Grazing multiple species alongside each other, like sheep and cows together, also improves the health of the pasture. The animals tend to like different plants, which improves forage quality and pest management. Multi-species grazing allows animals to graze vegetation at different heights, which can help manage weeds and reduce pest habitats.

The Nicholson Strattons are eager to share what they know about healthy food systems with their community and other farmers who want to think outside of the box. They offer educational opportunities, including classes and tours, to help demonstrate how some of these practices make sense both economically and for the land.

For the love of farming

“Social media is an abundant opportunity to engage with people that want to learn and have a desire to engage with where their food comes from,” Thomas said.

One of the ways Cody and Thomas educate others is through their social media presence on Instagram and Facebook. Over the years, they have developed their Foggy Bottoms Boys brand to advocate for agriculture as well as market their many direct-to-consumer products.

“Social media has really allowed us to find economic viability as a farm,” Cody said. “Consumers are comfortable and invested in our product because they’ve seen it develop over the last decade.”

The Foggy Bottoms Boys have come to appreciate the disconnect between people and understanding where their food comes from. According to the USDA Economic Research Service, on-farm employment only accounts for 1.2% of U.S. employment. In the 1960s, the U.S. farm population represented about 8.3% of the total labor force.

Even though people are further removed from ag, the Foggy Bottoms Boys have observed that many people still have a deep desire to connect with their food and understand how it gets to the store and their plate—and so Cody and Thomas have found a captive audience.

Finding answers

When Cody and Thomas decided to expand and diversify the family operation, American AgCredit was happy to partner with them and offer financial solutions like a revolving line of credit and a mortgage loan. The cooperative’s understanding of agriculture was a big plus for the Nicholson Strattons.

“We’re not working with an organization that we have to explain every aspect of our business to,” Cody said. “There’s an inherent understanding of what it takes to be a farm. That makes farming so much easier.”

Thomas said he appreciates that American AgCredit and Jillian Santos, their relationship manager, are always able to help the family find an answer or a solution to their issue.

“Getting to see them grow their business, diversify, and evolve, it’s been a real pleasure to be involved in,” Jillian said.

You can keep up with the Foggy Bottoms Boys on Facebook and Instagram at @foggybottomsboys.