The Tickled Pig Farm was established in 2003 by Matt Cordonnier of  Russia, Ohio. Matt's vision was to develop a holistic, organic small scale farm so he could raise the best possible food for his family. He knew that raising his kids on a farm would provide them with learning opportunities that only farm life can.

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Embarrassingly, Matt used to pride himself in trying to buy the cheapest meat he could find at the grocery. One day his mother suggested that he go to meet Frank Greishop, a local organic guru, who was one of the founders of the organic movement in the state of Ohio. Matt began volunteering on his farm. Frank taught Matt what it really means to be organic and what sustainable living looks like. Frank was nearly 100% self-sufficient and even farmed with horses.

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Through this experience Matt was transformed. He understood the meaning behind the words organic for the first time and learned key tenets from Frank like, "A healthy soil leads to a healthy animal. It all starts with the soil".

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During this time Matt also volunteered for Dan Kremer of E.A.T. Food for Life Farm. Dan is an apostle for the organic movement in the area and considers it his mission to educate others in the question of why

organic. Matt learned from Dan that "eating is a moral act."  Buying the cheapest piece of meat at a store involves much more on the moral scale than just getting meat at a low price. It opened for Matt a whole flood of questions that he never pondered before. How were the animals raised?  Who raised them and why? What were they fed? What would eating chemical fed GMO meat do to ones body? 

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"We're not a big farm, but we are focused on doing the right thing, morally and ethically when we raise our animals."

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The beef on The Tickled Pig Farm is mostly Dexter - a breed that is known for doing well on pasture. The cows are 100% grass fed and are not given antibiotics, growth hormones or shots of any kind. They eat grass like nature intended. They are born on Matt's farm and he is with them their entire life. Not every farm works that way since many buy from a sale barn and have no idea how their beef was raised prior to that. Some even claim they are 100% grass fed although they purchased the beef from a sale barn when it was a year old.

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The hogs are fed certified organic grain, which of course, is non-GMO. Matt is passionate about trying to save two critically endangered breeds - Red Wattles and Large Blacks. Both are considered 'bacon type' pigs, which is frowned upon in commercial circles since they put on a lot of fat. Because of this, the meat micro-marbles like beef, is red (pork is not supposed to be the other white meat), is very tender and full of flavor. People comment all the time that The Tickled Pig's pork is the best meat they have ever tasted. As part of Matt's mission to save these rare breeds The Tickled Pig Farm sells piglets to other farmers who want high quality meat for their family.