A Talk with Anna Houston
PHOTOGRAPH BY CHRISTINA RAHR LANE
Anna Houston and her husband, Rob Perazzo, who started Off the Shelf Farm in New Marlborough in 2018, are firmly anchored to southern Berkshire County. Those roots have been strengthened by their unique relationship with Berkshire Community Land Trust’s Farmsteads for Farmers initiative, which aims to address the problems of both land and housing insecurity among young farmers. The initiative secures land, places it into trusteeship, and creates a 98-year lease for the farmer, who builds up equity through improvements made to the buildings on the property and to the soil quality as well as any other infrastructure. The campaign identified its first property in 2022: the 79-acre River Run, along the bank of the Housatonic River and just north of Great Barrington.
With help from local philanthropist Jane Iredale, the land was secured and Anna and Rob were chosen as the fortunate lessees. They are currently farming at River Run, while the BCLT campaign to fully fund the purchase of the site continues.
Katy Sparks: What led you into farming, and farming chickens in particular?
Anna Houston: Both Rob and I have been farming for more than 10 years. I worked at Brooklyn Grange [a green roofing business] and Rob worked at Kinderhook Farm. We met at North Plain Farm. We both love to cook—it’s really important to us, so we think a lot about flavor. But for us it’s even more about nutrition, and it’s what we believe in. Also buying most of our food from people we know is a huge privilege. We have access to local CSAs, dairy, livestock, honey, maple syrup, and grains. Eggs are where we started. It’s the backbone of our business. Seven years ago, when we started there was a demand for local eggs and a revival of primal foods and people returning to it. We also raise 100% grassfed lamb and beef, but chicken and eggs are our main business.
KS: Tell us about your animals.
AH: We have four flocks of 700 Hy-Line Brown chickens in each flock. They are considered exceptional production birds and they each lay one sturdy shelled egg per day for up to two years. The birds eat a quarter pound of organic feed a day plus all the bugs and grass they can forage. We also raise 4,500 broiler chickens. The meat birds are a totally different breed. We sell whole chickens, breasts, legs, wings, necks, feet, and bone broth, so there’s no waste. This year, we’ll also raise a small number of Thanksgiving turkeys.
We also employ a livestock guardian dog—a Maremma sheepdog with a puppy on the way that the older and more experienced dog can train up. We love our dog, but she’s a working animal and doesn’t come into the house at all. A strong bond has developed between the dog and its flock and that’s what we need.
KS: Where do you sell your eggs?
AH: Where don’t we sell our eggs? Guido’s, Big Y, Berkshire Food Co-op, Rubiner’s, Prairie Whale, No Comply Foods, Southfield Store, the Great Barrington Farmers Market. And we do a huge business with Berkshire Grown and their food access program. Upward of 500 dozen eggs a week go to the People’s Pantry, Berkshire Mobile Farmers Market, CHP, and WIC through Berkshire Grown.
KS: How has the move to River Run changed your operation?
AH: It’s only been positive. Up until this point, everything we do has been fully mobile. We’ve had to use pastures here and there, and we’ve had to be able to move our flocks regularly. Now, we don’t have to move down the road all the time, so it’s already made our lives a lot easier.
KS: What makes your eggs so flavorful?
AH: Mostly it’s the way we manage them, which is intensive rotational grazing. We move them to fresh grass every single day. We never put them back on an area until the pasture has fully recovered. Also, it’s the freshness. Every week, everyone gets the freshest eggs. You’re getting this week’s eggs this week! And beyond that, our storytelling adds to the flavor; when you understand the ingredient, it tastes better. Flavor is in your head as well as on your tongue.
