We are committed to growing year-round, ecologically sound, top quality, nutrient dense food for our local community.

We are a family farm located on Westham Island, just outside of Ladner, BC. This land has been home to many. We acknowledge the traditional, ancestral and unceded territory territory of the Tsawwassen and Musqueam First Nations and of all the Hun’qumi’num speaking people, who have been stewards of this land since time immemorial. 
We sell our bounty at Vancouver Farmers Markets, to local restaurants, through our Farm Stand and through our CSA programs. We cultivate twenty four acres of mixed vegetables and cover crops.. All of our produce is Certified Organic with PACS.
We believe in building healthy soil through cover cropping, crop rotation, reduced compaction and compost. We believe healthy, nutrient rich soils create healthy, nutrient dense food.
Ecology and biodiversity are key. We are often in awe of our earth, from the flocking of snow geese in the fall to awaiting the barn swallows return each spring. We are proud to dedicate time and space to barn owl boxes, to planting hedgerows and flowering plants for beneficial insects and wildlife, alike.
We are life long learners, always seeking to improve our farming methods through simply walking the fields and observing, to talking to other farmers, to soil testing, to keeping up with the latest research.
With the help of staff, family and the fertile farmland of the Fraser Delta, we are able to produce some of the best Certified Organic produce in our region.

 

We love what we do and are grateful for your support.

Meet the Cropthorne Farm Team

Lydia (she/her)

Lydia is the owner and head farmer at Cropthorne and has always had a passion for farming. She obtained her BSc in Agriculture out on the prairies. After a few years of working in ag throughout Alberta and BC, she moved back to her hometown to start her own farm in 2009.  In 2014 she won BC’s Outstanding Young Farmer award. She is currently involved with the Delta Farmers Institute and sits on the Agricultural Advisory Committee for the City of Delta and Metro Vancouver. She is also a mum of 2!

David (he/him)

Lydia’s partner David, grew up as a ‘city kid’ and has a BSc in Agroecology and a MSc, focusing on the impact of Snow Geese on the farmland on the Fraser Delta.  He works off the farm as a wildlife biologist yet happily puts in the second shift here at the farm, getting wrangled into farm work, especially if it involves running the tractors. David used to manage a local non-profit working to conserve agricultural and wildlife resources on the Fraser Delta and brings a wealth of information to the farm. He’s also an amazing dad of 2!

Olivia (she/her)

A native of Boston, Olivia joined the farm in 2020 as our manager. She has a Bsc in Agriculture from McGill in Quebec and spent a bit of time honing her skills in that province before moving out west. Olivia is happiest problem solving with the crew, walking the fields to check on crops and organizing the storage coolers in the winter months. She is a self described spreadsheet nerd, to which we are all grateful for.

Hannah (she/her)

Hannah originally joined the farm during university for a summer job working at the farmers market. A chance encounter brought her back in 2020 and she is now our farm supervisor, spending most of her time working alongside our farm crew. She is our champion of staff birthdays and can whip up some pretty fantastic treats. Hannah hails from Alaska, and despite that fact, she’s not a fan of the cold.

Lindsay (she/her)

A Vancouver local, Lindsay has been with the farm since 2020. She is a familiar face to many as she leads many of our farmers markets. When not selling the farms bounty, Lindsay helps out in a variety of other areas on the farm and keeps us all on track. In her spare time, she is an avid cook and can found walking around the city with her partner and dog, Sam.

Nina (they/them)

Nina comes to us from Ontario, where they were raised on a family farm growing grains and soy. They have a background in the Arts, which can come in handy when creativity and farming overlap, which is more often than you think! Nina is in charge of all things maintenance, so they can be found repairing broken things around the farm and on the tractor keeping the fields clean.

Sarah (she/her)

Sarah is our restaurant lead, ensuring that restaurant orders are packed and delivered each week to our restaurant partners. Sarah is also in charge of keeping our pack shed all clean and tidy. She is also a familiar face for those that visit the West End and Riley Park market. Her favourite vegetable is black kale.

Our Seasonal Farm Team

We also employ both full time and part time and seasonal staff, without these dedicated members of the farm, all of this would not be possible.

Our 2024 farm crew is Bruno, Martin, Miguel, Simon, Teo, Nat, Juan, Marco, Dru and Catherine.

Rachel (she/her)

The farm is also home to Lydia’s sister’s flower farm. Rachel is the resident farmer-florist and owner of River and Sea Flowers. She sells to many local florists and her blooms can also be found at the Cropthorne Farmstand. Rachel is also mum to daughters Isla and Adelaide. Her husband John, who works off the farm, lends a helping hand with his great carpentry skills.

Sarah & David (she/her & he/him)

Parents, Sarah and David, are mostly retired, although not sure if that is really a thing for farmers as they both are still quite busy. We get all sorts of help from them from watching the grand-kids, to tractor driving to suppers during the busy spring plant and fall harvest. Above all they have been great mentors and have passed on the passion for agriculture.

The Next Generation

Lydia and David are also raising the next generation. Their daughter, Freyja, arrived in 2016, just after the spring field work was done and son, Gus arrived in early 2019 amid seed ordering and crop planning. Their dog brother Riske also calls the farm home, and loves digging in the compost pile as well as snacking on blackberries.

Future Cropthorne Farm Team

Each season we hire for seasonal farmstand, farmers markets and field positions.

Interested in being a part of our crew? Check out our employment page for more info.