Purple Sage Farms

Tim Sommer and Tamara Sloviaczek started Purple Sage Farms in 1989 on 45 acres outside Middleton, Idaho, earning organic certification that same year — long before "organic" became a grocery store marketing term. Tim is a fourth-generation Idaho farmer. His son Mike, the fifth generation, now works the land alongside him with wife Jackie handling communications. The whole family pitches in on everything from marketing to doctoring lambs to fixing the farm truck.

Over 35 years later, the farm grows more than 250 varieties of herbs, greens, edible flowers, and specialty vegetables across greenhouses and open fields in the Boise Valley. Their crop list reads like a seed catalog for the curious: heirloom varieties sit next to obscure herbs that most supermarket shoppers wouldn't recognize. That range isn't for show — it reflects decades of soil-building and experimentation.

Purple Sage holds both USDA Organic and Real Organic Project certifications. The Real Organic distinction matters because it verifies what USDA organic doesn't always guarantee: crops grown in actual soil (not hydroponically) and livestock raised on actual pasture (not in confinement). The Sommers also raise grass-fed sheep, goats, and cattle, and process dried and fermented foods — including kombucha — in their on-farm commercial kitchen.

You'll find their booth at the Boise Farmers Market from April through December, Saturdays from 9 to 1. They also supply local restaurants and grocers, and offer online pre-ordering for direct pickup. Distribution stays regional by design. This isn't a farm looking to become a national brand; it's a family that's spent three and a half decades feeding its community and building soil that gets better each year.

The Sommers mentor new farmers, speak at organic conferences, and serve on local food co-op boards. Their advocacy work runs as deep as their root systems.

Products

• Over 250 varieties of certified organic herbs and greens
• Specialty and heirloom vegetables
• Edible flowers
• Dried and fermented foods
• Kombucha
• Grass-fed lamb and livestock products

Why We List Them

• Family owned and operated across two generations (Tim and Mike Sommer)
• Certified organic since 1989 — over 35 years
• Real Organic Project certified since 2019
• No corporate ownership, investors, or franchise ties
• Idaho Preferred member
• Active mentors and advocates for Idaho's organic farming community