Our Mission

Trout Lake Farm is committed to providing high-quality, cost-competitive Certified Organic botanicals through ecologically and socially responsible farming practices.

Our Story

Trout Lake Farm was born in the Cascade Mountains of Washington State in 1973. The tiny Trout Lake valley was chosen for its abundance of pure water — the farm's irrigation is provided by the White Salmon River, fed by glaciers on Mt Adams — its temperate climate, its rich soils and its isolation from pollution, all of which make the area ideal for the cultivation of crops. The founders of Trout Lake Farm saw an opportunity to provide organically grown culinary and medicinal herbs that would be far superior to the relatively poor-quality herbs in the market at the time.

Trout Lake Farm’s original crops were Mint, Catnip and Red Clover. Later, farmed acreage and a milling operation in Grant County (eastern Washington) were added to the farm’s holdings. Trout Lake Farm East offers a drier, warmer climate great for growing catnip, peppermint and many root crops.

Today our primary crops are Echinacea purpurea and Echinacea angustifolia, Catnip, Peppermint, Spearmint, Skullcap, Valerian, Burdock, Marshmallow, Alfalfa, Lemon Balm, Oatstraw, Raspberry leaf, Dandelion and Nettle. Although small by conventional farming standards, Trout Lake Farm is able, through ongoing experimentation and innovation, to produce organic crops efficiently and economically.

We also manufacture an essiac tea blend, Camas Prairie Tea — Rene Caisse’s original formula. Camas Prairie Tea contains Sheep Sorrel, Burdock, Rhubarb and Slippery Elm, all Certified Organic.

In 1998, Trout Lake Farm was purchased by Access Business Group, a member of the Alticor family of companies. This has allowed us access to many more assets, including organic farming facilities in southern California, central Mexico and northeastern Brazil.

Our Farming Practices

Commitment to organic and sustainable growing practices were and continue to be one of Trout Lake Farm’s guiding principles. Absolutely no synthetically derived fertilizers, herbicides or pesticides are used on our crops. Our growing practices are intended to improve soil nutrition and fertility, practice seed preservation, ensure traceability and accountability and support integration and diversity of biological organisms.

Our farming practices include:

• Replenishment rather than depletion of the soil.
• Use of natural, environmentally-friendly methods to control weeds, insects and other predators.
• Crop and vegetation diversity, and integration of beneficial insects and microorganisms.
• Healthy soil-building practices, such as the use of compost, beneficial soil microorganisms and erosion control measures.
• No soil or environmental contamination, such as by use of genetically modified organisms.
• In-depth quality control standards, including comprehensive documentation of farm inputs, traceability of crop sources and a written quality assurance program that includes plans to avoid contamination and control pests.

Our Special Valley

Organic farming has a proud and enduring history in Trout Lake. In addition to Trout Lake Farm and several smaller organic farms, the Trout Lake valley also is home to three organic dairies, all members of Organic Valley Family of Farms, the largest dairy cooperative in the US. These family farms have gone full circle from the traditional, ‘old’ organic ways to conventional dairying and around to ‘new’ organic.

Monty and Laura Pearson, both descendants of the first dairy farmers to settle in Trout Lake, are owners of Mountain Laurel Jersey Farm, the first dairy herd in the state to be Certified Organic.

Robert and Leslie Schmid, whose family has been in the dairy business since Robert’s great-grandfather settled here in the late 1800s, own Mountain Meadow Dairy

Mark Schmid, a third-generation dairyman, and his wife Kristie, converted their Whitewater Holsteins dairy to Certified Organic in 1999.

We are proud to call these families our friends.

Organic Certification

Organic certification is our hallmark. Through it, we offer our customers complete assurance that we meet established and industry-recognized standards for producing botanicals completely free of synthetic herbicides, pesticides and fertilizers.

We offer Producer and Processor Certification for all our products through Washington State Department of Agriculture’s Organic Program, one of the first state-provided certification agencies in the country. We are Certified Kosher through the Star K kosher certification agency. Our products are GMO-free and never irradiated.

Product Quality from Field to Finish

Our commitment to assuring the quality of our products begins on the farm, with proper seed selection and healthy transplants. We continually search for ways to improve product quality through our farming, harvesting, drying, processing and storage practices. We conduct routine tests for microbes, moisture, particle size and marker compounds, then characterize each lot and provide a Certificate of Analysis to accompany every sale.

For more information about our products, please contact our Sales Department.

Contract Farming

We are always interested in exploring your custom farm production needs, not only for herbs but for any other suitable crop. We offer access to our substantial resources, including Certified Organic farm ground in a variety of climates, our knowledge of organic farming and a network of experts and resources.

Whether you are interested in organic crop production, development of cropping programs, bringing new species into cultivation or any other aspect of agricultural production, please contact us to discuss the possibilities.

Processing

Trout Lake Farm has manufacturing facilities for drying, milling, extraction and juicing. We offer our products in a variety of forms and cuts, including Cut & Sift, Teabag, Powder and Custom Powder.

Community Service

Trout Lake Farm is committed to contributing to the communities in which we operate. We actively support the town of Trout Lake (pop ~600) with a major yearly contribution to the Trout Lake Scholarship Fund, as well as through other donations to community programs, including the Trout Lake Fair, the area Arts Council and the county Food Bank. Trout Lake Farm East has received awards for its participation in United Way fundraising.

When making your planning and purchasing decisions, please remember the tremendous positive impact of sustainable organic agriculture on our planet. Think of Trout Lake Farm and always ‘Consider the Source.’