SuDan Lamb

Susie and Dan Wilson – the namesakes behind SuDan Lamb -- can boast that the soil on their two Willamette Valley farms is rich and healthy. And, they give credit where credit is due – to their lamb and sheep herds.

Together, this husband and wife team oversee a herd of purebred Cooperworth and Border Leister sheep in the Canby area. They also rent and run several hundred ewes in the Lebanon area. SuDan’s grass-fed lamb is a desired commodity, purchased weekly by more than 40 chefs in the Portland area and a big draw at the Saturday Portland Farmers Market.

Dan takes pride in his grass pasturing farming techniques. He knows grass-fed animals yield delicious and highly nutritious meat (chock full of omega-3 fatty acids), but he also likes to point out how beneficial animal agriculture can be to a farm’s ecosystem. How you manage your animals grazing habits can directly affect your soil, he explains. Grazing sheep, for example, use their hooves to break up soil, which stimulates seed growth. Their manure acts as a fertilizer and adds organic matter back to the soil. The more organic matter your soil contains, the less erosion and runoff occurs.

The five seasons Dan has spent at the Portland Farmers Market have provided him with the opportunity to work with the public and discuss the environmental benefits of animal agriculture and pasture-grazed animals – one of his favorite elements of the market, he says. At his farm’s annual open house, more than half of the attendees are his loyal market customers who come to take a peek at the operation for themselves. Dan also credits the market with helping him build his restaurant business, which keeps him selling lamb year round. Chefs discovered him at the market early on and began ordering direct from the farm. That business has steadily climbed during his market tenure. Look for the SuDan booth at this Saturday’s market as they begin their sixth season. Dan and Susie will be offering 15 different cuts of lamb; pet treats made of lamb bones; pasture-raised poultry and eggs; and their newest products -- lamb sausage and pepperoni stick.