STEWARDSON — Rarely does a grocery shopper get to see where the food they are buying comes from firsthand. But at Schultz Country Market, the shopper only has to step outside the door.
The quaint, small market is located off Highway 32 in Stewardson on a farm where cattle, hogs and chickens are raised.
The farm belongs to Brian and Nola Schultz, who for years had sold their cattle and hogs in quarters, halves or whole to people who wanted it. The customer would buy the animal from them, and the Schultzes would take it to the processor. The customer would then pay for the processing.
“But we had some people that don’t have enough room, don’t have enough money, or there’s just me, or there’s just us. So, that’s when we decided, you know, let’s try it in a market setting. Then we wanted to try and help the community out too, become an asset with the community,” said Nola Schultz.
The Schultzes wanted a building where people could shop for individual cuts of their beef and pork.
The couple approached their son, Austin, who farms with them, and his wife, Mikaela, with the idea.
Mikaela Schultz thought the timing was right. With T & L Locker in Stewardson now closed, there were few options to buy meat in Stewardson, and without a grocery store, produce either.
“So, we thought, well, if we’re going to provide meat, then let’s see about produce,” said Mikaela.
The store offers the staples to make a simple meal, such as onions, carrots and peppers.
It didn’t take long after it opened on Sept. 15 to add other locally sourced items.
The honey comes from a neighbor a mile down the road. A lot of the peppers either come from Sigel or just down the road, according to Mikaela.
The shop also sells homemade candy from a shop in Shelbyville and items such as jellies from Beachy’s Bulk Foods in Arthur, rubs from Effingham and barbecue sauce from Toledo. The handmade crafts, such as candles and ornaments, are even local, and sourced out of Neoga.
“We just want to help small businesses out,” said Nola. “We all got to stick together. And just keep it in Illinois and make it as homegrown as possible.”
The Schultzes have gotten the same support from the community. The market has been a welcome convenience for the older generations who don’t want to travel to Effingham.
“A lot of times, they’ll come in weekly and get their meat, and they’ll grab their little bit of produce that they need and they say I don’t ever have to go to Walmart anymore,” said Mikaela.
The store has also drawn people from outside the community, including Shelbyville, Windsor, Mattoon, Charleston, Findlay, Neoga, Effingham and Teutopolis.
“There’s a couple from Chicago that have a lake house, and they’ve come in several times,” said Mikaela.
Nola and Mikaela welcome customer suggestions, whether they’re meat-related or adding another item to their inventory.
“We’ve tried to accommodate whatever they’ve asked for, depending on what our processors will do,” said Mikaela.
Nola said they raise their livestock naturally.
They are pasture and grain-fed, depending on their life stage.
“We are grain finished on our beef,” said Mikaela, adding they mix their own feed for the cattle as well as hogs, which are on an all-vegetarian diet and antibiotic-free.
Their living conditions are also more wholesome.
“They are all in open buildings. They’re not over a pit. They’re bed-packed,” Mikaela added.
They raise the livestock differently from when they started over 30 years ago with confined buildings from farrow to finish. Nola notes that this has resulted in a different taste in the meat.
“It’s much better than it was years ago when we first started. They have access to sunlight, fresh air,” she said.
Mikaela and Nola operate the store, but come harvest and planting time, it’s all hands on deck.
“We are very much a family farm. You’ll find her (Mikaela) and I out sorting hogs, loading hogs, helping the guys getting a calf in that’s out,” said Nola.
Nola said they have a lot of ideas for the store, including a walk-in freezer. But for now, they are focusing on what the customers want and how best to serve them, then grow the market.
“We’ve always thought outside the box. What can we do differently? What can we add to this?” said Mikaela. “We never want to just be the same all the time. We always want to grow.”
The Schultzes also want to educate the community, particularly younger generations, about agriculture.
“We want people to not only come to the market, but we want them to be educated about what they’re buying and why it’s best to buy from farms you know,” said Nola.
That is one of the reasons they decided to locate the market on the farm.
“You know exactly where your meat is coming from. That’s what people want. They want to meet the farmers. They want to see the farmers,” said Nola.
Schultz Country Market is open from 3 to 6 p.m. on Wednesdays and Thursdays, noon to 6 p.m. on Fridays and 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturdays. The market is located at 2885 E. 300 North Rd. Visit Schultz Country Market on Facebook and Instagram.