ABOUT US

Thanks for being here. We look forward to learning more about you , too!

Our Story

Think back to being a kid, playing outside.  Life was simple, we felt good. 

Then we came inside to “grow up.” And we were disconnected from the magic . . . and we certainly got disconnected from our food source. 

(“No kids, eggs don’t come from a supermarket! 😜) 

Anavo Farm founder, Jen Boulden, believes this disconnection is at the root of so many of our problems, from depression to diabetes… to apathy towards saving our one beautiful home, planet Earth.  

So now is the time to step into awareness, and return to Eden. 

Anavo is the manifestation vision to create a physical space to let people experience living in harmony with nature. (It’s the only thing that turns the lights on. Experience.) 

Through many twists and turns, the stars have finally aligned —  to offer the perfect land in the heart of the gorgeous Santa Ynez Valley, with the momentum of a “back to the land” movement, and a growing interest in high-quality foods. 

Meet Zora, the little lamb that started it all.

Five years ago, Jen invited a farmer’s herd of 50+ sheep in to mow + fertilize her pastures. When the newborn lambs needed help, he wasn’t to be found. Jen quickly figured out how to bottle feed, and when Zora came when Jen called , she realized the dream of having experiential farm committed to “being the change” was being born.  

A few years later at an event, Jen sat next to the founder of a popular L.A. vegan cafe, and he confessed that they added cows to the land where they grew their food because the land needs managed grazing to be the most productive.
(Read that again.)  

Meet the Team

  • Jen Boulden, Executive Director

    After working for a decade in digital marketing and building brands, in 2005 Boulden co-founded Ideal Bite, a daily email dedicated to “light green living.” The company quickly grew a huge audience in part due to Boulden’s PR prowess, amassing a following of nearly a million subscribers, and was eventually acquired by the Walt Disney Company. When not running Anavo, Boulden can be found competing with her horse, wrangling her two children, or shoveling manure into the compost pile.

  • Robyn O'Brien - Anavo Farm Board Memeber

    Robyn O'Brien, Director

    O’Brien is a co-founder and Managing Director of rePlant Capital, a financial services firm scaling climate solutions on farm. She is also a Fulbright scholar, best-selling author and widely recognized speaker on global food systems. In 2020, she was recognized on Forbes Impact 50 List for her work at the intersection of agriculture and climate.

    Robyn has been called “food’s Erin Brockovich” by Bloomberg and the New York Times. Her TEDx talk has been seen by over 1 million people.

  • Ryan Engelhart

    Ryland Engelhart, Advisor

    Engelhart co-founded Kiss the Ground in 2013, a nonprofit devoted to outreach and training around regenerative agriculture. He was also a producer of the highly-acclaimed Kiss the Ground documentary released on Netflix. Engelhart is a passionate speaker on the topics of sacred commerce and food as medicine, as well as a co-found of the popular LA-based vegan cafe, Cafe Gratitude. A dedicated husband and father, he lives on a 17-acre organic farm in Fillmore, CA, where he is learning to practice what he preaches.

  • Roger Lang, Director

    Lang is highly regarded as “the reasonable environmentalist.” He is a successful FinTech entrepreneur with two IPO’s, one of the first “regenerative ranchers” who brought ranchers and conservationists to the same side, and now heads up BCP Blitz, a venture capital fund that invests in technology companies that transform our global food system to be sustainable, secure and healthy. When not closing deals in the Bay Area or around the globe, he escapes to Montana where he’s developing an intentional retreat center on the Madison River.

  • Elizabeth Novogratz, Advisor

    Novogratz is the founding president of Species Unite, a non-profit that helps people understand that “what we do, think, and wear matters.” After a decade of travel into places most of us could not, she witnessed life-changing inhumane animal agriculture and trade. In 2018 she founded Species Unite to bring the brightest people and best non-animal products together on one curated media platform with award-winning podcasts. When not behind the mic, Beth can be found dining at NYC vegan restaurants wearing her stylish apple-leather boots.

Partners

Anavo Farm partners with other organizations to strategically collaborate on advancing our collective mission of bringing food justice to ALL people and species.

FARM FORWARD

The premiere policy-based advocacy group working to end the cruel practice of factory farming and rampant false food labeling.

SPECIES UNITE

An award-winning media outlet committed to showing why and how to transition off of our heavy reliance of farmed animal products.

KISS THE GROUND

Leading nonprofit awakening farmers to the possibilities of regeneration and inspiring grass root support through their award-winning documentary.

 FAQs

  • A nonprofit exists for the greater good of society when the government isn’t doing its job. Why is “Big Ag” getting subsidies (with our tax dollars) while farmers who are trying to do the right thing (for our land, for our health, for our futures) get no help at all? So we are here to raise consumer awareness to put pressure on the powers that be.

  • We occupy a unique space in the landscape of helping bringing “regen” to the mainstream. Our land, farm stay, farm-to-table events, and founder’s background in media allow us to both get the word OUT to a broader audience while also inviting them IN to experience how life truly feels when we live more in harmony — as nature intended.

  • Yes. Research has shown that regularly eating red meat and processed meat can raise the risk of type 2 diabetes, coronary heart disease, stroke and certain cancers. While most Americans eat too much meat, we firmly believe that shifting to “less meat / higher quality” is the path forward.

  • We do not sell meat or cheese here as all of our animals have a name; however, we do sell pasture raised eggs and do offer “farm to table” experiences where guests can eat off the land.

  • Yes! We are looking for help with farm activities, events, media outreach, and social media. Please use the contact form to get in touch if interested!

  • Yes! You can book a stay at the Anavo “Sheep Chic Retreat” through AirBnB.

  • Yes! You just need to work with the Anavo Events Manager. If food is being served, the menu needs to represent our ethos.

“The first rule of sustainability is to align with natural forces, or at least not try to defy them.”

Paul Hawken