255. Tim and Sophia Eng on Cooking and Community Cultivation

The Thriving Farmer Podcast

What are ways you can get involved in your local community?

On this episode of the Thriving Farmer Podcast, Michael is joined by Tim and Sophia Eng who are both first-generation Asian American farmers who left their Silicon Valley careers to start a 5-acre micro farm in northeast Tennessee. Tim is a homestead-focused realtor and Sophia is the author of The Nourishing Asian Kitchen cookbook.

Tune in to hear how they are cultivating a community and the next generation.

In this episode, you’ll hear…

• About Tim and Sophia got started in their real food journey 1:41
• What is typical of Asian American food offerings 4:03
• More on Sophia’s biggest learning experiences while writing her cookbook 8:31
• About their move from California to Tennessee 11:20
• What the word “community” means to Tim and Sophia and what kind of community they aim to build in Tennessee 21:29
• All about the different enterprises that Sophia and Tim are involved in 27:02
• How the cookbook has become a lead qualifier for their real estate business 30:44
• About what’s next for Sophia and Tim 38:07

About the Guest:

Tim and Sophia Eng, author of The Nourishing Asian Kitchen, is a first-generation Asian American and first-generation farmer who left a successful Silicon Valley career to start a 5-acre micro farm in the Appalachian Mountains. Sophia is the founder of the website Sprinkle With Soil, and a Weston A. Price chapter leader. With her husband, Tim, they raise grass-fed dairy cows and beef cattle, laying hens, broilers, ducks, sheep, goats, turkeys, and grow a variety of produce for her family and local community.

Resources:

Website - https://www.sprinklewithsoil.com Preorder the cookbook! Tim Eng, Homesteading Agent - https://homesteadingrealtor.com Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/sprinklewithsoilFacebook - https://www.facebook.com/sprinklewithsoilblog

The Thriving Farmer Podcast Team would like to thank our amazing sponsor!

Conservation organizations play an important role in supporting local farms and food efforts nationwide. In the heart of the Ozarks, this land trust is taking land access for farmers one step further where they are offering affordable stable leases.

Through the NWA Food Systems Initiative, NWALT is offering underserved farmers the opportunity to sublease certain designated tracts of farmland on a dedicated property to help support sustainable farming practices in Northwest Arkansas. The Farmland Lease Program is available to beginning and experienced farmers who are interested in fruit and/or vegetable production. Approved applicants will have access to water and electric utility infrastructure, shared access to farm equipment and harvesting facilities with neighboring participant farmers. In addition, farmers accepted into the program will have access to education, training, and other resources to help them succeed.

You can learn more about the program and the farm location in this podcast or contact 479-966-4666. Information is online at www.nwafarmlink.org.

https://bit.ly/farmlandlease