I recently sat down with Sam Knapp to talk about his cold storage farm. I think we also called it a winter storage farm. I was intrigued by what he was doing and why. What brought him to Fairbanks and invest his time, energy, money and dedication to this effort. He is a strong proponent of sustainability and wants to have fresh produce available all year long. It’s a daunting proposition because we have only 4 good months where farmers can grow their crops. Most farmers grow crops that they must sell during summer months as storage of these crops, like green leafy vegetable, tomatoes, herbs, lettuce, etc. is not possible. There are methods that people use, for example drying, freezing, canning, but its not the same as getting vegetables in their original form all year long.
What vegetables are these? Potatoes, turnips, winter squash, cabbage, beets, parsnips, rutabagas, kohlrabi to name a few. He is the only farmer in Interior Alaska that has a cold storage farm and produces winter storage vegetables, a niche that he has cultivated for himself and his farm that serves his passion for winter storage farming.
Sam is a co-owner and the primary farmer at Offbeet Farm. Sam worked for other vegetable farmers in Sweden, Alaska, and Wisconsin before starting his own farm in the UP of Michigan in 2017, Root Cellar Farm, which focused on storage crops and offered a winter-only CSA. He ran Root Cellar Farm for three years before returning to Alaska to start Offbeet Farm in 2020. Sam didn’t grow up on a farm but gardened with his family in northern Wisconsin. Sam got his B.S. degrees in physics and chemistry in 2014 before catching the farm bug in a serious way. Along the way, Sam worked as a Fulbright scholar on a sheep research farm, worked in AmeriCorps with indigenous communities to organize farmers markets, and picked up a master’s degree in plant ecology. Sam is passionate about both farming and winter storage, and he writes for various farm-focused publications on both topics. (Source: https://offbeetalaska.com/)
He has recently written a book as he is passionate about sharing what he has learned and wants others; largescale farmers, small farmers, home gardeners, to try having a cold storage as well. His book is very comprehensive and guides those interested in cold storage to build one for their own without having to guess much. His book, titled Beyond the Root Cellar, is scheduled to be out in November. You can go to his website https://offbeetalaska.com/ and preorder a copy. It will also be available for preorder at Amazon.
His journey is very interesting. Once he made up his mind he was going to be a farmer, he narrowed his focus on sustainability and how to prolong the fresh vegetable availability all year long. This focus also addresses food security, especially in Interior Alaska.
I hope you listen to the podcast and get to really know Sam Knapp. Our Interior Farming community is fortunate to have him.