Gowin Valley Farms is a small family farm in Rocky Face, GA (a ~30-minute drive from downtown Chattanooga) that has been in operation since 1964. The 122-acre farm was started by Emma’s late grandfather, who specialized in small vegetable and fruit production.
During the pandemic, Emma and Gabriel moved to help out on the farm, which was just temporary at first. While exploring the property, they noticed a large amount of golden chanterelle mushrooms growing along the trails of the farm. This led them to get their foraging certification and sell the mushrooms locally.
From there, the door to growing gourmet mushrooms opened. When deciding whether to pursue a change of careers and transition to permanently living on a farm, Emma said her grandfather gave her some advice: “Never let someone tell you you can’t do what you want.”
Fast forward to now, Gowin Valley Farms has a new focus on sustainable indoor + outdoor gourmet mushroom operations — and all of the mushrooms are certified naturally grown (think: no GMOs or any synthetic chemicals used). The farm received a grant and is working in partnership with Kennesaw State University + Cornell University to conduct indoor mushroom-growing research. They received a mushroom cultivation chamber (inside a 40-ft shipping container) equipped with systems to automatically regulate the growing conditions of the mushrooms.
Read more at noogatoday.6amcity.com