The Beginning of Seasonal Harvest
Transforming the Local Food System

It all started when Darren Vollmar, while delivering produce from his family farm, Ledgeview Gardens, began noticing a pattern: he kept running into the same farmer at the same delivery spots, both doing the same thing but with double the resources. Darren eventually asked the question that would change everything: “What are we doing? There must be a better way.”
Around the same time, Darren met Sheri Howard, and the two began brainstorming a solution—a powerful model that could benefit local producers and make their lives easier. That’s when Seasonal Harvest was born. Sheri and Darren started aggregating produce from local farms and simplifying the process of distribution. They recognized that many farmers struggled to break even due to high delivery costs and dependence on farmers' markets. By aggregating and distributing produce from various farms, they lightened the load for farmers.
In those early days of Seasonal Harvest, key players played an important role in helping the company to grow successfully. Luke Wojcik and Tracy Vinz were instrumental in laying the foundation for success.
Ledgeview Gardens also played a pivotal role. It became the central hub where farmers brought freshly harvested, washed, packaged, and labeled produce. From there, Seasonal Harvest took care of the logistics. It has been a steady, thoughtful growth as the team has worked to build a sustainable, producer-first model.
One of the central practices of Seasonal Harvest has been ensuring smaller farms are on an even playing field with larger-scale operations. They prioritize fulfilling orders from the smallest farms first. This model promotes a sustainable local agricultural system and eliminates some of the barriers that prevent small farms from selling into the wholesale market.
Seasonal Harvest’s producer-first model also addresses concerns about fair pricing.
“The farmers’ market is often a race to the bottom for pricing because it's total competition, and that's how our consumers are trained to buy in today’s environment,” Sheri says. “We are looking for our producers to thrive and not just survive. We aggregate at the product level–using a preset price–that allows our producers to sell their products at a profit. It's not just about them being able to make a profit; it's also about them being able to grow.”
Many Seasonal Harvest producers, such as DC Farm for Vets, have been able to greatly diminish their time at farmers’ markets, thanks in part to getting fair prices for their products and a reliable way to distribute their goods. Providing both production and sales support allows producers to focus on what they do best–growing quality food for our community.
Seasonal Harvest is dedicated to supporting local producers. “As a producer on a small farm, I understand the challenges our producers face,” Darren says. “I am always here to provide our farmers with answers to their questions, advice, and support. I am available to help our farmers get better in any way they can.”
Seasonal Harvest customers understand the value of supporting local agriculture. Regional schools have even completed studies comparing the waste from the produce coming from commercial food trucks versus freshly harvested produce from local farms. Amazingly, buying fresh, local food has resulted in less waste in school lunch programs. By partnering with Seasonal Harvest, schools like the Unified School District of De Pere can serve farm-to-fork, reduce waste, and simplify logistics, all while supporting local farms.
Today, with the help of our newest team member, Bridget Gerondale, Seasonal Harvest works with over 35 producers and serves a growing list of customers across the region, operating 52 weeks a year. They are actively seeking ways to expand their impact, including opportunities to connect with other hubs across the state to broaden their reach. They are ensuring that the system they have created remains sustainable and scalable, making a momentous impact in the lives of farmers, the community, and the entire food system.
“What we're doing here with our community partners, with our customers, and with our farms is getting back to self-sufficiency—a level of self-sufficiency within our communities that has been missing,” Sheri says. “Self-sufficiency is all about our ability to be resilient, to feed ourselves, to look at home first, and to have some connection to food again. Our hope is that people begin to understand the labor of love that goes into growing food and the benefits it brings to them and their families.”