Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Jessie Gantt-Temple. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Jessie, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. Being a business owner can be really hard sometimes. It’s rewarding, but most business owners we’ve spoken sometimes think about what it would have been like to have had a regular job instead. Have you ever wondered that yourself? Maybe you can talk to us about a time when you felt this way?

I am happy as a business owner. As I have been farming for eight years, it has crossed my mind to think about switching to a “regular job.” Raising livestock, constantly has you face life and death, and the death part is what triggers my mind to contemplate getting out of the farm gig. This past week, I discovered a dead bird who was killed by a predator. I have definitely toughened up since I became a farmers but my emotional side does outweigh my rational thoughts when I am in these situations. I always immediately revel in a state of melancholy, wondering what I could have done differently to prevent it. That thought is then followed by the idea that maybe I’m not good at raising chickens and should get into a more traditional, less likelihood of deaths, kind of job. In the end, I haven’t opted to quit yet as I know I’m giving them the best life possible up until they are no longer on this earth.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

My husband Robert grew up on a farm and knew that he wanted to revive that lifestyle when we settled in Chattanooga in 2014. We have owned & farmed Feathers & Fruit in Soddy-Daisy since 2016. Starting with six blueberry bushes and thirty egg layers, we now have over two hundred happy hens free-ranging, along with an orchard of blueberry bushes, figs, pears, and cherries.

Fresh eggs, ten flavors of pickled eggs, pickled okra, bloody mary mix, spiced apples, lemon marmalade, and herbal salts are just a few of the locally grown/sourced products we offer. Also hosting events on the farm like a Mother’s Day Brunch, Pistol Safety Courses, and Canning Classes, I love entertaining and educating about our farm.

With a passion for decreasing food waste, I began canning in 2018 after connecting with local farmers who an abundance of crops that no one wanted to go to waste. Before farming, I was also a radio dj & journalist so needless to say I love to talk. My goals are to grow my canning skills through sharing them with my community.

How about pivoting – can you share the story of a time you’ve had to pivot?

Our business was bumping in 2020 due to the limitations placed at grocery stores. We were selling an average of four dozen eggs to one customer. However, with the popularity of Covid gardens, the public also invested in Covid backyard chickens so our egg sales went down in 2021. I gifted sixty dozen eggs to my community but after that, I realized I couldn’t just keep giving eggs away. That’s when I began to pickle eggs and now, three years later, I have ten flavors of pickled eggs, regular pickled egg customers, and am known as the Pickled Egg Lady (which I guess is cooler than being called the Egg Lady). I never would have thought I would be making & selling pickled eggs, nevertheless having ten flavors but the pandemic forced my hand to get resourceful which has grown my business in a way never expected.

How’d you meet your business partner?

Robert and I met through roller derby. He was the head referee of the Cape Fear Rollergirls in Wilmington, NC and I was a skater for the Palmetto State Rollergirls in Myrtle Beach, SC. Our teams were sister teams where they would scrimmage against each other and just had a familial relationship. He and I knew each other for three years (as our derby names mind you, not real names) before we started dating.
After a couple years of dating, he asked if I wanted to move in with him…in Tennessee. With a recent job change, I was open to the adventure and we went from the coast to the mountains for wedded bliss. He retired from derby when we moved. I continued to skate with the Chattanooga Rollergirls. I retired in 2018 when the farm really started to be more demanding.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://feathersandfruit.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/feathersandfruit/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FeathersAndFruit
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@FeathersAndFruit

Image Credits

I own the rights to all the photos