Agriculture 2025: HEATWOLE, CORWIN

Sixth-generation chicken farmer Heatwole started his humane, sustainable and traceable chicken company in 2014. Originally named Shenandoah Valley Organic but rebranded as Farmer Focus in 2020, the company lets farmers own their flocks, make key decisions and receive fair compensation.

Farmer Focus has more than 120 farming partners and more than 1,300 team members. In March, the company announced that a redesign of its packaging by Truly Creative, a California design company, earned the 2024 Graphic Design USA Best-of-Year Award out of more than 8,000 entries. Each package contains a unique four-letter Farm ID that traces back to the chicken’s farm of origin.

In the aftermath of Hurricane Helene last year, Farmer Focus worked with the Food Bank of Central & Eastern North Carolina to donate more than 75,000 servings of chicken for those in need of meals.

According to a July Securities and Exchange Commission filing, Farmer Focus has raised $7 million, with the first sale in the raise occurring in January.

Heatwole moved from the CEO role to chairman of Farmer Focus’ board of managers in 2023. Stephen J. Shepard has worked as president and CEO since then.

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