Rheas Mill Gardens, Farmington, AR
Farmer/Grower
January, 2015 – January, 2020
Ashley Swaffar owns and operates Rheas Mill Gardens, a 7.5 acre certified organic mixed vegetable farm located in Farmington, AR. When she is not working on her farm, Ashley spends a large portion of her time traveling the country working as an independent animal welfare inspector focusing on laying hen farms and inspecting organic crop and livestock farms.
Ashley previously worked as the Director of Policy and Planning for Vital Farms where she was responsible for governmental and industry affairs, production planning, new farmer development, organic system plan development/compliance, as well as being the liaison between contract growers and Vital Farms. Prior to joining Vital Farms, Ashley was with Arkansas Egg Company working through the positions of Quality Assurance and Production Manager, Operations Manager and the Director of Special Projects. Ashley focused a great deal of her time working with the 48 family farmers that produced eggs for Arkansas Egg Company on farms located in Arkansas, Oklahoma, Missouri and Georgia.
Ashley previously served as a founding member and a past President of the Organic Egg Farmers of America (OEFA) that represents over 125 companies and 7 million organic laying hens. The OEFA brings together various stakeholders dedicated to the production of eggs in compliance with the Organic Standards, and to create an environment of honesty and co-operation for betterment of the industry as a whole.
Ashley holds a Bachelor’s degree in Poultry Science from the University of Arkansas.