Grant Family Farm is owned and led by Chris Grant. Chris began selling vegetables and pumpkins on the side of the road when he was 14 years old. In 2006, when he was 16, Chris started Grant’s Plants, a small perennial business producing groundcovers for landscapers and garden centers across the North Shore of Massachusetts.
Chris graduated from Essex Agricultural & Technical High School in 2008. He received an Associate’s Degree in Fruit & Vegetable Production from the Stockbridge School of Agriculture in 2010, and a Bachelor’s Degree in Plant, Soil, & Insect Science with a concentration in business from The University of Massachusetts Amherst in 2012.
In 2011 Chris (with the help of friends and family) began growing vegetables to sell every Thursday at the Salem Farmers Market. Chris quickly fell in love with the social connection and community aspect of farmers markets, meeting some of his best friends and even his partner Alice there. Over the years Grant Family Farm has expanded to the Swampscott, Marblehead, and Roslindale markets every week during the summer and fall.
Grant Family Farm is truly a group effort and could not be sustained without the support and hard work of our team of family and friends. Today, Michelle Grant (Mom) can be found tending the chickens and Aunt Diane can be found at the farmers market with the occasional appearance of Memmer (grandma). Warren (brother) is the lead mechanic when all things go wrong. In 2019 after Officer Nancy retired from her role as the Salem Market police detail, Grant Family Farm gained her as a farmers market and home delivery helper. You’ll meet Alice (girlfriend) working at farmers markets and at our new farm stand.
In 2019, Grant Family Farm found its forever home in West Newbury, Massachusetts through persistence, luck, and strong community support. With the help of Essex County Greenbelt Land Trust and the Town of West Newbury Community Preservation Act (CPA) funds, Chris purchased and conserved 10 acres of iconic farmland in West Newbury from the Cooney family. This location, Brown Spring Farm has been known and loved by many as a central destination (located on Rt. 113 in West Newbury) for fresh produce and cut flowers for over 140 years. Chris plans to honor the farm’s history by renovating the Victorian farmhouse and breathing new life and energy into the farm stand. The land will stay a working farm forever through Chris and Greenbelt’s diligent work to put it under an Agricultural Preservation Restriction.
