Yael Seitman, Suzie’s Farm

I’m originally from Mexico City, but I grew up here in Bonita, California, not too far away from the farm. I have been the greenhouse manager at Suzie’s Farm for almost a full year. Before that, I worked for another edible landscaping company and before that I was a yoga instructor.I did not learn farming from my parents or from anyone in my close family, but I’m sure I have farmers in my family line. Being a yoga teacher really emphasized a lot of healthy habits and one of them was eating healthy. I’ve always had a passion for where my food comes from. I feel like being outside and being able to connect with plants and growing food is really where my career is.”

“I really value the connection that I have with the people in the field, particularly because I’m able to communicate with them in Spanish and they share a lot of their knowledge with me. They don’t necessarily have an academic background in agriculture, but it’s something that they’ve known their whole life and it’s in their blood. Being able to work closely with people that still have that connection has been a really important part of working here for me.”

“I love winter crops. I could eat winter crops all year. I particularly love kale. I make it really simple. I like to pour just a little bit of olive oil and salt on it and massage it until it gets nice and soft, maybe squeeze a little bit of lemon. Sometimes I add carrots. Sometimes I add beets for a really nice, fresh salad. I also love roasting it at a high temp for a short amount of time until it gets nice and crispy. I could eat kale all the time!”