Jóia Food & Fiber Farm
il de France and South African Meat Merino (SAMM) cross mixed with Dorset
Wendy Johnson
Charles City, Iowa 50616
Website: www.joiafoodfarm.com www.countingsheepsleepco.com
Instagram: @joiafoodfarm @countingsheepsleepcompany
Facebook: Jóia Food Farm
Offering: wool-filled pillows, comforters, mattress pads and eye masks
Our farm, Jóia Food Farm began in 2015 as a way to perennialize the North Iowa landscape for increased conservation of natural resources, utilizing ruminants grazing perennial forage, while providing food to local and regional communities. With a growing flock of ewes, we also had a growing amount of coarse wool and decided to add value to this wool by creating wool-filled pillows. In 2020, we started Counting Sheep Sleep Company, utilizing St. Peter Woolen Mill in St. Peter, MN to craft our pillows, comforters and mattress toppers. We craft our eye masks and most of our pillows in Iowa. Our farm and fiber story is based around climate change and how farms can become more resilient amidst the increasing severe weather events we are seeing. A reduction in fossil fuel use, an increase in perennials on the land, livestock on the land, composting and diversity of enterprises and people are all necessary to reverse and mitigate climate change so that rural communities can thrive. Our mission for both businesses is to be a part of the agricultural solution, not the problem, using these indigenous practices to honor the Earth while producing food and fiber.
