MEET YOUR FARMER

Emil’s Story

My father was part of a multi-generational farm family which immigrated to the U.S. from Germany about 100 years ago. Eventually they established a 225-acre dairy farm in SE Wisconsin. I spent much time there until I was 10 years old when the farm was sold. My grandmother had been widowed years earlier and the children had gone off to their own lives. Several established their own farms. About a year later I started my first garden with a couple of rows of potatoes at home. I became heavily involved in the local FFA in high school with a garden that was now about a ¼ acre and a flock of chickens. I had not only vegetables but an assortment of fruits such as apples, grapes, plums, pears, rhubarb, strawberries, and raspberries.

Being very successful in winning awards in the FFA and being a chapter officer for 3 years I ended up as a state Vice President for a year. I went to college to become an agriculture teacher but switched half way through to attain a degree in horticulture from UW-River Falls. Unable to find a good paying job in my field and working in minimum wage ones for a few years I met someone with some related experience and we started our own company. After several years the business failed and we parted ways. I took low wage jobs to pay off some of the debts and to put myself though a two-year college in another interest I had, computer programming. This was in the 90’s as computer technology was becoming a hot field to be in.

After becoming very successful in my new passion for a good part of 20 years I stated to want more than a home garden again. As I was getting older at a high stress job, married with 4 step-children, my health stated to show signs of getting worse as a type 2 diabetic so I started a hobby farm becoming a non-certified organic vegetable farmer in addition to my full-time career. That was the start of ET Natural in 2008. Over the following years we made many mistakes and dealt with many natural problems with weather and wildlife. The new business was hard but good for my health and allowed us to give food back to the community through donations to Second Harvest Food Shelf and occasionally to others that needed some help.

Meanwhile, my wife Tami, had established a different career and was successful advancing to a great paying position. This allowed me to leave my full-time position and focus on the farm. This is my primary passion in life and I hope to grow the business supplying healthy, fresh, locally grown food. I am hoping to establish a larger successful business and find the right person to mentor that would like to continue it as an owner when I decide to retire. 

- Emil Slack