Sustainable farming has long been a staple business in the hills and valleys of the Lost Sierra, and Sasquatch Farms, located off of Chandler Road in Quincy, is no exception. Recently, we were able to interview Jon Mc- Cormick, the man behind this bigfoot-branded farming operation, to pick his brain about how he got started and where he’s going next. Originally from Southern California, McCormick spent much of his childhood in the company of his grandfathers – both of whom were avid gardeners that instilled a love of farming and building into him fairly early on in life. However, as he grew older, McCormick didn’t see a future where he’d be doing that for a living and, after high school, went to Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (ERAU) in Prescott, Arizona, in hopes of becoming a pilot. The gardening bug bit him again while he was at ERAU, when he took a class on Arizona desert native plants and decided that plants really were more fun to work with than flying was. Instead of continuing his aerospace education, McCormick returned to SoCal and began attending classes at Orange Coast College in Costa Mesa, earning a certificate in ornamental landscaping and design there. While at OCC, he became involved with a nonprofit called Global Noble Deeds, where he spent some time doing edible and dryland landscaping across the Greater Los Angeles metropolitan area. In 2013, word came down to him that his grandparents in Quincy were no longer interested in farming their land and were looking to sell it, but McCormick saw an opportunity there and eventually gained their blessing to move up and farm the property in exchange for maintaining the facilities there. To pay the bills at first he took on a job at the Chalet View Lodge in Maybe, and this was what eventually introduced him to his farming mentor, Gary Romano of Sierra Valley Farms in Beckwourth. Romano helped him learn the ropes of farming in the Feather River Country, and now McCormick can stand on his own two feet farming thanks to Romano’s guidance. Over the years, Sasquatch Farms has produced a variety of goods for farm and table, and this year will likely be no different. McCormick currently plans to bring melons, Shishito peppers, mixed greens, cucumbers, squash and tomatoes to local restaurants and both the Quincy and Portola outlets of the Feather River Food Co-op, as well as a continued presence at Romano’s weekly farmer’s market in Beckwourth. In addition to fresh produce, Sasquatch also began producing CBD oil products in 2019, which can be found at the co-op outlets and on the farm’s website, sasquatchfarmscbd.com. As for what’s next? McCormick
admits there’s still some
risk of the land he farms being
sold, so Sasquatch Farms is still
on the lookout for plots of land
to lease and potential investors
in the farm itself. Otherwise, be
on the lookout for the familiar
logo of a waving bigfoot at your
local farmer’s markets and in
co-ops across Plumas County.