Meet the Farmer

For Leslie Wiser, farming is both a form of exploration of her identity and a point of connection to the world and communities around her. Though Leslie grew up in the Midwest, her first experience with agriculture was in Alaska. Initially, Leslie was drawn to the experience of working outside, using her body, and growing her own food. But her time on-farm sparked something deeper in her: the desire to provide for the community around her. 

Years later, after moving to California with her two kids, Leslie was able to acquire farmland in Sonoma County and started Radical Family Farms. She knew that she wanted to farm, but wasn’t convinced on what to grow - even while she was preparing her land and growing cover crops. It was her family trip to Taiwan that inspired her to reconnect with her roots by growing Asian-focused produce. Her first season, she grew produce that was important to her heritage without having any customers, outlets, or connections lined up. In order to share her journey, she started an Instagram account for her farm as a way to explore her biracial identity and craft. Leslie began gaining followers and customers, and soon started selling her produce across farmers markets, CSA, pop-up shops, and direct to chefs.

As Radical Family Farms has grown, Leslie has developed values-aligned Community Initiatives for her farm that include climate-smart farming, mentoring under-represented beginning farmers, and supporting culturally relevant food access for communities in need. The Feeding Seniors program is particularly important to Leslie, allowing her to give service to AAPI elders and show gratitude for the mentorship and sacrifices of her grandparents.