RS5’s Scraps Feed Local Rescue Farm
- by Guest
Hamilton P. Pig, a.k.a. Hammy, a 1,200-pound rescue pig, is happy to do his part in battling food waste
Submitted by Joey Bloom, Marketing Coordinator
Of course Bravo readers know just how important food recovery and reduction of food waste is to Bon Appétit’s core values. So imagine how tickled Executive Chef/General Manager Ron Stewart of RS5 Café in Hillsboro, OR, was to form a partnership with a farm that will let Bon Appétit feed the farm’s animals as well as its fields.
Dorinda “Dori” Callaway and her daughter run M&L Hockman Ranch, an animal sanctuary and produce farm in Colton, OR. The haven came into being rather accidentally. In December of 2011, Dori received a call from the service manager at her local Toyota dealership alerting her that there was an issue on a nearby farm: domesticated geese that could no longer fly were in danger from nearby predators. She left work immediately, rescued the geese, and M&L Hockman Ranch was born.
Since then, the ranch has become home to multiple horses, ducks, goats, and Hammy and Stella the pigs. These appreciative animals live out their years safely as family rather than livestock, while sales from the organic produce farm and handmade crafts support operations. Since meeting Ron, Dori’s been picking up scraps every Thursday from the RS5 Hillsboro campus. What doesn’t feed the pigs, horses, and chickens directly gets turned into organic compost that feeds the produce.
“I was so happy to meet Dori and to cultivate a friendship that sustains this mutually beneficial relationship,” says Ron. “It is really rewarding to know that our food scraps are going to good use and being put back in the system by someone in the community is so much a part of why Bon Appétit opens its doors every day.”