We think it's incredibly important to get to know our farmers, the people who feed us three times per day! While not (yet) one of our beef suppliers, Jake Wolki is starting to make waves online, documenting his journey from small business owner to regenerative farmer. We sat down with Jake to hear more about his story.
You haven't always been a farmer, what were you doing before and how'd you end up in farming?
Before I got into farming I was running my families bicycle shop, Cycle Station, and Cafe Musette. I love retail and sales and was having a great time in these roles! On my health journey I was really getting plagued by allergies and skin rashes. Medical intervention kept intensifying with stronger and more frequent medication and treatment, with less and less effects. I started changing my diet with immediate and great effects - this is what led me to wanting to farm!
How has the transition been? What have been the hardest and the best things about it?
The transition has been fantastic for me and my family. It’s changed our lifestyle so much - all for the better!
You're passionate about regenerative practices, what does that mean for you on your land?
To me, Regenerative Agriculture is about improving the commons. Air and water are both resources that we all share as a community and farming practices have a direct impact on these. If we step back a bit, soil health is really a civilisation common resource and community health and wealth are downstream of that. Regenerative Ag is about deploying management that enhances these commons for the betterment of all.
How do you think that impacts the quality of your products?
Farming in a completely chemical free way really lets your farms ecosystem and health reset and start to sort itself out. Holistic Management accelerates this natural abundance model, animals thrive. In this chemical free model I believe we are producing unadulterated protein, fit for human nourishment. We get feedback very often from people all over Australia who are on food healing journeys about how chemical free food has been instrumental in reclaiming their health.
What type of reaction do you get from other farmers to what you're doing?
Some farmers love what we do, wanting to know more and get involved. There are many trailblazers out there already on this journey and some have been pioneering it for a long time. Others think it’s a joke or are offended that by proxy we are insinuating that their production models are “less than”. It’s fine, we are here for the service of customers - not peers.
And you have a 24 hour butchery, how did that come about?
In 2020, my wife and I know that to scale our farm business we needed to take processing in house. We bought a butchery in town that had recently closed and got the boning room operational and got to work! I never wanted to open a front of house for sales. Customers kept asking and I knew that I couldn’t make it work. The volume we produced at the time could not come anywhere close to supporting the overhead of a sales assistant out the front serving people! I kept getting asked when the front was opening and one day I realised that I could make it work if I didn’t have that labour liability. So I basically build a huge walk in vending machine. It’s open 24/7 to members. They access with a unique pin, scan the meat they want via an app on their phone and check themselves out!
We have hundreds of members and have had zero issues with theft or vandalism. Most even leave the place nice and tidy for us!
How can readers try your products?
The best way to access our products is via wolkifarm.com.au. Use code CHIEF for 10% off your first order! This code can also be used in conjunction with free shipping if you sign up to our Wolki Farm newsletter.
We are now shipping our meat weekly to 10,000 suburbs across Australia! We are working really hard to increase the offering on our website and have new products, boxes and innovative offerings all the time so people should make sure they sign up to our mailing list, we like to have a bit of fun there!
Lots of people I know have dreams of becoming a farmer, what advice would you give to others thinking about getting into farming?
If you have an interest in farming you should find a value aligned farm nearby and volunteer your time for a period of time that you are comfortable with. It won’t be super helpful to the farmer but if they are a good sport they should have you along! That hands on experience is SO valuable and will really help you set your expectations against reality and get some clarity on your farming passions and goals!
Comments (1)
Great interview! :))