WHY WE FARM
Eighth Day Farm began in 2010 as a small step to a lofty goal: to provide Holland with participatory opportunities to combat ecological injustice, the national health care crisis, community/family isolation or separation, and social justice (particularly as it relates to labor ethics/rights, and access to nutritious food).
In 2025, we donated $11.7k worth of produce, plants, and compost to food pantries, kitchens, and community or educational gardens. Our SNAP CSA program, as well as programs like Double-Up Market Bucks or Senior Project Fresh, a collective $7.3k worth of produce found its way to individuals and families.
As a farm, we are inspired by faith in its many forms. As individuals, we carry this faith as we work, whether in God, in Earth, or in each other.
HOW WE FARM
Regenerative Agriculture
Many words, terms, and concepts are used to describe non-conventional (non-industrial) food production methods. Some are very technically specific, while some are simply marketing strategies that have little to no meaning regarding how the food is actually produced.
At Eighth Day, we practice regenerative agriculture. From a high level, this means taking a holistic, long-term view of the food production ecosystem that integrates both farming systems with ecological and biological systems. It respects that good food grown well is the byproduct of a complex web of systems, only part of which we directly control.
Regenerative Practices are not new; in fact, they likely represent some of the oldest food production systems that have been used and improved on for thousands of years by indigenous people in all parts of the world.
We focus first on building healthy soil and second on short-term crop yield.
Composting
As we work the farm, pulling weeds, pruning tomato plants, pulling up old roots to make room for new successions, all of this waste is added to our compost piles. Worms and microbes living on the farm, and the sun’s heat, work together to decompose this waste, turning it back into soil filled with nutrients perfect for fertilizing more plants. Composting keeps organic matter out of the landfill, thereby reducing methane emissions. It also allows us to fertilize crops without the use of chemicals, and is a key strategy in regenerative agriculture.
Your kitchen scraps can become part of our mission, too!
With the button below, sign up for the right pick-up plan for you (“How often would I fill a 5-gallon bucket with my food scraps?”). We’ll provide you with a 5-gallon bucket for you to fill and a lid. When it comes time to swap it out for a fresh one, we process your food scraps at one of our growing sites.
Certified Naturally Grown
Certified Naturally Grown is the grassroots alternative to Organic and is designed for small farms, not agribusiness. The standards are largely the same, with the main difference being the inspection process, which is carried out by a local farmer instead of an auditor from the USDA. The local farmer-inspector is best suited to ask specific questions based on their knowledge of the local pest pressures and farming challenges, and to make helpful suggestions to improve the farm’s sustainability. Check out our profile on the CNG website to view our inspection info.
Eighth Day Farm doesn’t knowingly use any synthetic pesticides, herbicides, fungicides, or GMO seeds. We test our soil biannually and make amendments as needed. Our inputs largely consist of the compost we create on-site, poultry and fish fertilizer, and mineral amendments. We farm to feed the people in our community and the biology in the soil.
WHERE WE FARM
The Growth Center
709 Pine Avenue
This one acre site is embedded in the downtown holland neighborhood.
The Holland Town Center
12330 James Street
The 2 acre farm carved out of the parking lot and is our main production site.