We had the good fortune of connecting with Ben Edwards and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Ben, what should our readers know about your business?
Schoppee Farm is an organic hemp/CBD company on the coast of Maine. It’s a family farm, now going into its 9th generation with our 1 year old, Beverly. We’ve been organic for decades, and we keep a tight control on our products and production. Everything is “seed-to-sale” — meaning all of our products — from the CBD sleep capsules to the chocolate bars to the doggie treats — are made by us, on the farm, in a certified organic process.
We’re also a little different because our product development process is driven by the needs of our family and friends. In fact, a lot of this business came around from my own mother’s struggle with cancer. We don’t do marketing studies or anything when developing a new product. The team — Dr. Rioux, Dr. Meer, my wife Allison, and I — kind of look around and say, “who’s being bothered by what?” And then we develop a product to treat that. And then, if we love it, we make it available to the public.
For example, our CBD sleep capsules. I have trouble sleeping, and almost everyone else I know does too, so we spent almost three years developing a truly fantastic sleep aid. We’re rolling that out nationwide right now. But there’s always other great stuff we’re making in the lab that we’ll probably never get around to rolling out — like our flavored CBD coffee syrups.

As a parent, what do you feel is the most meaningful thing you’ve done for your daughter?
I am a new parent, my wife and I have an 1-year old beautiful baby girl, Beverly. One thing comes to mind, and that is showing my daughter just how much I love and adore her mother. My father’s love for my mother shaped my life in a way that I am only now coming to realize. I waited until I was almost 40 to marry, it took me that long to find the right partner, and that has made all the difference. I want to set a similar example for Beverly.
Next to that, I want to demonstrate through my own actions what it means to live by your principles — even if it’s risky. I recently left a stable career to pursue a far riskier one as an organic farmer on the coast of Maine. It’s important to me that my daughter see her mother and me living by the principles we believe in — sustainability. Environmental consciousness. Organic farming. Independence.


Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?

How about an itinerary for a day Downeast; In the middle of the summer, when the plants are in and growing and the weather is beautiful, but before the mayhem of harvest ensues.
After a good night’s rest in the 200 year old farmhouse…
0400 rise and shine. It’s a farm after all, the day starts early. A good farm breakfast of bacon, eggs, pancakes, tomatoes and toast, all either from our farm or another local farm. A good stiff espresso or two of course.
0500 join the crew for morning meeting.
0500-0800 Start your assigned field inspection as the fog starts to lift revealing a beautiful day and calm ocean in the background. Enjoy the sights, sounds and smells of a maturing hemp crop all the while looking for signs of bugs, critters, or anything else that may be troublesome for the crop.
0800 back to the farmhouse to change clothes, grab hiking boots, and head to the Bold Coast Trail in Cutler.
0900-1200 a leisurely hike along the rocky cliffs.
1230-1330 Grab lunch at Bad Littler Brewery in Machias and head to camp.
1400-1700 relax on the beach at Bog Lake and go for a boat ride, do a little tubing or maybe fishing if you’re so inclined.
1700-1900 straight from the ocean Maine Lobsters are delivered to the camp by a lobsterman friend and we all enjoy a good Maine Lobster dinner and some local blueberry pie. Maybe a quick hot tub to ease sore muscles.
1900-1930 head back to the farm
1930-2100 sit around the fireplace in the old farmhouse and listen to my brother or wife play a little piano. Drink an evening nightcap and reminisce about the day.
2100 Bed! 0400 comes fast.


The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
The list is long of course, but I would like to mention my brother Peter and his fiancé Kate. Peter left his life as a merchant marine engineer to help restart the farm, Kate joined him from day one and has commuted  to her day job as a firefighter ever since. They both have put their lives on hold for the past 3 years to help us restart the farm. It would simply not have been possible without them.

Website: https://schoppee.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/schoppeefarm/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/schoppeefarm

Image Credits
Allison Edwards (all)

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