At Maple Wind Farm, we pride ourselves on raising animals with care, respecting the land we steward, and providing food that truly nourishes. To give you a peek behind the scenes, we sat down with Abby (our product manager) and Lindsay (our livestock farmer) to chat about favorite products, how our food gets from pasture to plate, and the values that drive our work. Here’s what they had to say!
Q: What’s one product from Maple Wind that every customer should try—and why?
Abby: Chicken thighs, hands down. They’re the perfect mix of dark and light meat, and if you fry the skin and then bake the thigh—it’s extraordinary. It’s my absolute favorite cut.
Lindsay: I’m going to go with something a little more unexpected: chicken feet. I know it sounds unusual, but if you’re on a gut health journey like I am, chicken feet make the most incredible, gelatinous broth. It’s packed with nutrients and honestly a game changer.
Q: What about a partner product you think everyone should try?
Lindsay: Vermont Fermentation Adventures—they make delicious fermented veggies that are full of good bacteria. I put it on everything: eggs, mac and cheese, soups. It takes any meal up a notch.
Abby: Oh, and Strafford Ice Cream. No explanation needed. It’s that good. Actually, I have a rating sheet on my fridge with scores for every flavor—and they’re all five stars. It makes me happy just looking at it!
Q: Can you walk us through how one of our pasture-raised meats—like chicken—goes from farm to freezer?
Lindsay: Sure! One thing that makes Maple Wind unique is that we raise our meat birds from the time they’re just two days old. For the first three weeks, the chicks live in a warm brooder on deep bedding until they’re strong enough to go outside.
Once they’re ready, they move onto pasture, where they’re rotated daily onto fresh grass. This daily move means they’re always getting clean forage—grasses, legumes, insects—and living in a healthy ecosystem. They also get a non-GMO grain ration.
Abby: When it’s time for processing, our field crew goes out that same morning to catch the birds. It’s part of our commitment to humane handling—they’re not waiting around in crates all day.
From there, the birds are brought directly to our USDA-inspected processing facility right here on the farm in Richmond. Every step is handled by our team—processing, air-chilling (not water-chilling), cutting, packing, labeling, and distributing.
Lindsay: The following day, we’re fulfilling orders for our wholesale partners, online store, and on-farm market. That includes packing for farmers markets and home delivery, too. It’s a full-circle operation.
Q: How do you ensure quality and consistency across everything you offer?
Abby: At the heart of it all is purpose. We care deeply about the people who eat our food, the animals we raise, and the land we manage. That commitment shows up in everything we do—from animal welfare to food safety.
Lindsay: Our team is incredibly mission-driven. We’re here because we believe in regenerative agriculture, in nourishing our community, and in doing things the right way—even when it’s the harder way.
Abby: On the process side, being a USDA facility means we follow strict food safety and quality protocols. We have an inspector on the line every day. We follow rigorous sanitation and handling practices. But more than that, our culture of care—among both staff and farmers—ensures that every step matters.
Q: What do you hear from customers about why they shop here or what they love?
Lindsay: The most common thing I hear? “This chicken is juicy AF.” Seriously. People are obsessed.
Abby: Just yesterday, a customer drove over an hour from Rochester, Vermont—even though we offer shipping—because he wanted the in-person shopping experience. He eats a lot of chicken and says he’s never felt better than when eating ours. We hear stories like that all the time.
Lindsay: Many of our customers are on healing journeys—recovering from illness or dealing with allergies—and they tell us our products are some of the only ones they can eat and feel good. That’s powerful. It’s what keeps us going.
Q: Anything else you’d like to add?
Abby: People love that they can get so much here. Whether it’s our pasture-raised meats, local cheeses, Vermont ferments, flowers, or even ingredients to make an epic meat pie—you can find it in our on-farm market.
Lindsay: It’s a one-stop shop that supports not just our farm, but hundreds of other local producers. And with things like home delivery, shipping, and easy online ordering, it’s more accessible than ever.
Want to taste the difference for yourself? Visit our farm store, shop online, or find us at Burlington Farmers Market.
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