TH UR SDA Y , JU LY 14 , 2 0 16
COUNTY WIDE YOUR HOME AND FAMILY NEWS FROM ALL OF KENDALL COUNTY
KendallCountyNow.com
ROOM TO ROAM App aims to boost awareness of crate-free livestock operations
By KATIE SMITH and BEN DRAPER
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ksmith@shawmedia.com • bdraper@shawmedia.com
hile some farms confine their animals to small crates and crowded pens, sheep at Heatherhope Farm in Sycamore are free to stretch their legs and graze the pastures. Heatherhope Farm is managed by retired pastor John Seraphine, who is one of several area farms supported by Crate Free Illinois (Cratefreeil.org), which is working to create awareness about the differences between traditional farmers and concentrated animal feeding operations – where animals are confined. Crate Free Illinois aims to help people buy direct from local farmers via its new mobile app – which includes a variety of options for Kendall County residents. “We believe in pasture-raised,” Seraphine said. “We believe in sheep and other ruminants have evolved over thousands and thousands of years to live on grass, so we practice what you might call intensive pasture management or grass management. You take good care of the grass and the pasture, and when needed, you don’t permit them to overgraze.” Some of the local farms in Kendall and DeKalb counties on the Crate Free Illinois app include Ferndell Farms and Zydek Farms in Newark, Three Maples Farm in Oswego and Larsen’s Country Market in Sandwich.
See CRATE-FREE, page 5
Danielle Guerra – dguerra@shawmedia.com
Farmer John Seraphine releases one of his North Country Cheviot sheep back to the flock after checking its hooves and teeth after his border collie, Abbie, herded the flock to him in the pasture July 1 at Heatherhope Farm in Sycamore. Seraphine and his wife, Connie, have worked with border collies since 1993 and have had a flock of sheep since 2002.