Kristin Varela-Schild never planned to become an organic greenhouse farmer in southeastern Idaho. Last year, however, investors convinced her to expand her family business, Kristin’s Farm Stand, to a 490-acre farm south of Malta.

“Investors who owned geothermal property there found us because we’re skilled at running greenhouses and raising livestock for consumers who crave organic produce and hormone-free meat delivered to their doorsteps,” Varela-Schild said.

Eight employees tend to tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, green beans, lettuce, spinach, kale, arugula, eggplant, microgreens, eggs, cattle and pork.

The farm stand differs from other food-delivery services, she said, because consumers shop for food as if they were at a grocery store.

“We don’t offer a subscription service,” Varela-Schild said. “All of our products are sold individually. You can cherry pick exactly what you want, in the quantities you want, including meat by the individual cut. We like to make it easy on people without the fear of a commitment. There’s no minimum to order, either.”

She said the motto “Food is Medicine” motivates her.

“I can’t claim the motto as my own,” she said, “but our family has lived this and seen its truth with our very own eyes.”

She established the farm stand after their daughter became critically ill. In 2016, her daughter lost 32 pounds in three months and was diagnosed with severe Celiac disease.

“She was intensely intolerant of gluten and certain preservatives and chemicals in food, so we started raising our own food,” Varela-Schild said. “The only change we made was eating the food we grew, and she regained her health and weight. It made such an impact on me, seeing the connection between what food you eat and your health.”

Their friends and neighbors began asking to buy their homegrown food.

“Our vegetables are flavorful and nutrient dense because they’re grown as soil-based vine crops and are delivered shortly after they’re picked,” Varela-Schild said.

Due to high demand for the vegetables, she began the farm stand near their home at Brighton, Colo., in 2018 as a customized fresh food service with home deliveries.

She said the Idaho farm was an ideal location for expansion.

“It’s central to large markets — smack dab between Boise and Salt Lake City with easy access to cities to the north as well,” she said.

Six new 30-by-100-foot greenhouses were built in 2019. Eventually, the greenhouse floors will be plumbed with geothermal water to heat them during winter.

Farm manager Jake Smith said, “Nothing goes to waste here. Vegetables that are good but don’t meet standards for appearance are fed to the chickens and pigs.”

Livestock is pasture-raised and grass-fed and -finished. The meat is processed at a USDA-certified butcher in Rigby. Livestock is rotated frequently throughout pastures to fertilize the land without chemicals.

“We’re focused on improving the soil through grazing methods and growing crops with no-till planting,” Smith said.

Their pasture-raised chickens are moved weekly to a new spot, so the land is fertilized in each new location.

“The chicken house is on skids, so we pull it with a tractor, and the chickens follow us,” Smith explained.

After planting in January, they picked their first crop — tomatoes and mini sweet peppers — in March. With excess produce in late March, Smith donated hundreds of pounds of tomatoes, green beans and mini seedless cucumbers to Burley, Idaho, churches. The food was given to members who had lost their jobs due to the coronavirus pandemic but hadn’t yet received unemployment checks.

“It’s important for us to give back to local communities,” Varela-Schild said. “We have a strong demand for our food in the region. Life’s too short to eat bad food. We’re excited to be in Idaho.”

Occupation: Founder of Kristin’s Farm Stand

Education: Bachelor’s of science degree in biology/zoology with a Spanish minor from Colorado State University, 1997. Also completed master gardener certification.

Family: Husband and three daughters, ages 16 to 20.

Motto: Food is Medicine

Online: More information about the farm’s weekly food delivery can be found at www.kristins-boise.com or kristins-saltlake.com.