Josh and Morgan Snedden are not your typical farmers. They both have degrees in psychology from Grinnell College and worked in different fields before they decided to grow food.
Visitors to the Homewood Farmers Market may recognize the Sneddens who have been selling their produce there. They are the owners and operators of Fox at the Fork Farm in Monee, where they grow organic vegetables, herbs and flowers.
They also received the 2023 Local Farm Changemaker Award from the state agriculture department for their leadership in developing the local food economy and helping Illinois farmers feed Illinois.
of the Year Award on Jan. 17 from Illinois Department
of Agriculture Director Jerry Costello, center. The Sneddens
operate Fox at the Fork Farm in Monee and sell their produce
at Red Bird Cafe in Homewood. (Provided photo)
Josh is from Homewood and is a 2007 graduate of Homewood-Flossmoor High School.
The couple’s journey to farming began when they moved to the East Coast for Josh’s job in the insurance industry. Morgan, who had been a crisis counselor in an emergency room, wanted to try something new and found a job on an organic vegetable farm. She discovered her passion for plants and farming.
“One of the first things I fell in love with with regard to farming is seeing the progression from seed to flower to fruit and knowing that I played a part in that coming to be,” Morgan said.
“I realized how impactful growing local food could be for communities economically, nutritiously and for climate reasons. And so I just sort of just, you know, along the way, pictured it being a journey that we would work on together, but really Morgan would lead and I would provide support,” Josh said.
They moved back to Illinois and bought the land in 2019 and started Fox at the Fork Farm. However, because of the pandemic they did not start selling produce till 2021. Josh was inspired by Morgan and the impact of local food on communities and the environment. He quit his insurance job in 2022 and joined Morgan full time on the farm.
They are part of small scale farms, meaning they have less than an acre of planted space. Morgan believes that the future of sustainability is small scale farming, and while she stays optimistic she is worried about automatization of the big scale farms with robots.
“I think there’s a lot of momentum in the future of farming, there’s a lot of people that are paying attention to how productive we can be on a small footprint right now,” Morgan said. “That’s really exciting.”
Small-scale farms, which make up 94% of the farms in the United States according to Washington State University, play a crucial role in strengthening rural communities, contributing to local economies and providing a significant portion of the nation’s food supply.
The Sneddens also shared their thoughts on the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018, commonly referred to as the farm bill that was extended by Congress through September 2024. Morgan expressed her concerns about the political games surrounding the bill and her hopes for funding conservation-related programs.
“It’s already been pushed. It’s been pushed back several times at this point. And I fear that it’s really just a political game at this point. But things that I would love to see are funding for conservation related programs,” Morgan said. “It’s a challenge to get access to that funding, and with more funding available that would make it easier for farmers to apply some of these climate-smart practices on farms, and those would really help to make farms resilient in the long term.”
Josh echoed Morgan’s sentiments and emphasized the need for a climate-smart focus, research opportunities and funding for growers and farmers interested in adapting to climate change.
“I’d like to see climate-smart focus on providing research opportunities and research funding for growers and farmers who are interested in adapting to climate change and changing the landscape of the food system in Illinois and across the country because Farm Bill is national,” Josh said.
He also highlighted the importance of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), which is funded through the farm bill.
“A lot of people don’t realize that the farm bill is a food and farm bill,” Josh said. “It provides the funding for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and continued growing investment in SNAP,” Josh said. “Food is a right not a privilege.”
The Sneddens have decided they won’t be returning to the Homewood Farmers Market this year. They will release more information in the near future about where their produce can be found.
Owners of Fox at the Fork Farm share their story and hopes for the future
By Amina Sergazina
Josh and Morgan Snedden are not your typical farmers. They both have degrees in psychology from Grinnell College and worked in different fields before they decided to grow food.
Visitors to the Homewood Farmers Market may recognize the Sneddens who have been selling their produce there. They are the owners and operators of Fox at the Fork Farm in Monee, where they grow organic vegetables, herbs and flowers.
They also received the 2023 Local Farm Changemaker Award from the state agriculture department for their leadership in developing the local food economy and helping Illinois farmers feed Illinois.
Josh is from Homewood and is a 2007 graduate of Homewood-Flossmoor High School.
The couple’s journey to farming began when they moved to the East Coast for Josh’s job in the insurance industry. Morgan, who had been a crisis counselor in an emergency room, wanted to try something new and found a job on an organic vegetable farm. She discovered her passion for plants and farming.
“One of the first things I fell in love with with regard to farming is seeing the progression from seed to flower to fruit and knowing that I played a part in that coming to be,” Morgan said.
“I realized how impactful growing local food could be for communities economically, nutritiously and for climate reasons. And so I just sort of just, you know, along the way, pictured it being a journey that we would work on together, but really Morgan would lead and I would provide support,” Josh said.
They moved back to Illinois and bought the land in 2019 and started Fox at the Fork Farm. However, because of the pandemic they did not start selling produce till 2021. Josh was inspired by Morgan and the impact of local food on communities and the environment. He quit his insurance job in 2022 and joined Morgan full time on the farm.
They are part of small scale farms, meaning they have less than an acre of planted space. Morgan believes that the future of sustainability is small scale farming, and while she stays optimistic she is worried about automatization of the big scale farms with robots.
“I think there’s a lot of momentum in the future of farming, there’s a lot of people that are paying attention to how productive we can be on a small footprint right now,” Morgan said. “That’s really exciting.”
Small-scale farms, which make up 94% of the farms in the United States according to Washington State University, play a crucial role in strengthening rural communities, contributing to local economies and providing a significant portion of the nation’s food supply.
The Sneddens also shared their thoughts on the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018, commonly referred to as the farm bill that was extended by Congress through September 2024. Morgan expressed her concerns about the political games surrounding the bill and her hopes for funding conservation-related programs.
“It’s already been pushed. It’s been pushed back several times at this point. And I fear that it’s really just a political game at this point. But things that I would love to see are funding for conservation related programs,” Morgan said. “It’s a challenge to get access to that funding, and with more funding available that would make it easier for farmers to apply some of these climate-smart practices on farms, and those would really help to make farms resilient in the long term.”
Josh echoed Morgan’s sentiments and emphasized the need for a climate-smart focus, research opportunities and funding for growers and farmers interested in adapting to climate change.
“I’d like to see climate-smart focus on providing research opportunities and research funding for growers and farmers who are interested in adapting to climate change and changing the landscape of the food system in Illinois and across the country because Farm Bill is national,” Josh said.
He also highlighted the importance of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), which is funded through the farm bill.
“A lot of people don’t realize that the farm bill is a food and farm bill,” Josh said. “It provides the funding for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program and continued growing investment in SNAP,” Josh said. “Food is a right not a privilege.”
The Sneddens have decided they won’t be returning to the Homewood Farmers Market this year. They will release more information in the near future about where their produce can be found.
