In celebration of the release of Founding Farmer Sarah Frey’s book, The Growing Season¸ Frey Farms announces the official start of the Pumpkin Season.
Frey is entering a new growing season now as Frey Farms, the country’s largest pumpkin farm, gears up for a first – a pumpkin harvest during a global pandemic. Dubbed the “Pumpkin Queen,” Frey stated, “Pumpkins make people happy. “Pandemic or not, Pumpkins are associated with feelings of comfort and coziness.”
Growing up on a small, isolated farm with her family, produce farmer and innovator Sarah Frey knows what it means to feel isolated and alone. Facing poverty and hardship, Sarah Frey moved out of her house at 15 years old and began to implement her plan to escape rural poverty and leave the farm for good.
As a teenager, when the land she grew up on faced imminent foreclosure, she made a decision that would alter the course of her life and the family’s future. In her new book, The Growing Season, Frey shares her personal story, including how she purchased the farm and became one of America’s largest fresh produce growers and suppliers providing fresh fruit and vegetables to the nation’s top retailers.
“Everyone faces adversity at some point in their lives, but it’s important to remember that nothing holds us back forever,” says Frey. “We all have the courage within ourselves to overcome fear and challenges. In writing The Growing Season, I wanted to remind others that even during life’s most difficult times it’s still possible to discover the good.”
Frey speaks from personal experience. She faced many obstacles in her young life, from having to hunt and harvest her own food to finding the courage to negotiate with the world’s largest retailers as a teenager. Her hardscrabble upbringing prepared her for the business world.
“Farmers are eternal optimists,” says Frey. “Life is just a series of growing seasons. Some are more difficult than others, but the ones that are fallow can teach us just as much as the ones that are bountiful. Pumpkins symbolize a time of harvest. While I am excited to celebrate the release of The Growing Season, I am excited to celebrate pumpkin season.
Beyond pumpkins, Frey Farms also produces watermelons and other fruits and vegetables available throughout the country under the Sarah’s Homegrown brand. Wanting to eliminate waste and give a purpose to the “ugly” fruit, Frey tapped into her entrepreneurial side by adding a beverage line of cold-pressed juices that includes Tsamma watermelon juice and Sarah’s Homegrown Agua Frescas, lemonades and teas.
The Growing Season is available today at Walmart (online and in-store), Barnes and Noble and on Amazon. To learn more about The Growing Season and Sarah Frey visit Frey Farms or follow Sarah on Instagram at @sarahfrey.
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About Frey Farms
Frey Farms is a Certified Woman Owned Business founded by Sarah Frey in 1992. Today, Headquartered in Keenes, Ill, Sarah and her four older brothers operate farms and facilities in seven states. Frey Farms distributes its fruits and vegetables throughout the country through its Sarah’s Homegrown label. They also feature a complete line of juices through Sarah’s Homegrown Tsamma Watermelon Juice. For more information, visit www.freyfarms.com. Connect with Sarah on Instagram @sarahfrey
