This week on the FarmHouse, a podcast by Lancaster Farming, we're talking to Alyssa Adkins, a produce farmer in Freeport, Maine.

Adkins and her partner Nathan Broaddus own Farthest Field Farm where they grow produce and make their own jarred products.

The farm specializes in peppers and hot sauces.

"My partner and I decided to start with value-added products," Adkins said. "There's so many CSAs to choose from, there's so many farmers selling vegetables at farmers markets. So it kind of made sense for us."

The farm sells five varieties of hot sauces as well as salsas and other products.

Adkins does have a bit of a culinary background. She used to be a registered dietitian and worked in restaurants.

This background — plus her own personal canning experience — led her to recipe development. For all of the jarred products, taste and flavor are the most important elements; the spice is secondary.

"We don't have any sauces where we're melting your face off because we want you to taste things," Adkins said. "We want you to taste what we grow. We put so much work into these hot sauces."

Adkins are Broaddus bought the property for Farthest Field Farm in 2022, and their goal is to work the land in a way that's best for their business and for the environment.

Adkins wants to rebuild the soil and pollinator habitat. To accomplish this, the farm is no-till and uses organic methods.

While the farm is not currently certified organic, Adkins said it can sometimes work in their favor.

"We have found that when you're not organic certified people ask you more questions," she said. "We like that. We really like that people are engaging with us in that way."

Adkins also engages people by hosting events on the farm

"We see how interconnected farms are to everything that is around them," she said. "We call it a community farm and we want it to be that in the fullest sense from the tiniest little microbes in the soil to the humans who might come here for events."

The Spicy Scoop: Can the Lancaster Farming Team Handle These Farm-Made Hot Sauces?

The Lancaster Farming Team sat down to try five hot sauces from Farthest Field Farm and answer some questions about agriculture, journalism and what makes for a good hot wing. 

Click here to watch!