Help EFC Farms recover from Hurricane Ian

We are EFC Farms with the motto of One Earth… Our Family…for the Community. We are a family owned and operated aquaponic farm specializing in artisan lettuce, cucumbers, tomatoes, peppers and eggplant. We service the local market with all natural grown produce that is fresh, local and delicious.

We have over 500 tilapia fish to provide nutrients for our growing system. We also grew microgreens, mushrooms and other vegetables. We also have many tropical fruit trees (bananas, mangoes, papaya, lemon, lime, Starfruit and a few others). We have a dozen bee hives and sell fresh raw honey. We just were planning selling eggs from our 150 egg layer chickens.

We share the story of our sustainable farming techniques with tours to many groups and individuals through our agritourism events.

That was before Hurricane Ian. We are located at 6901 Hendry Creek in Fort Myers. The east fork of Hendry Creek flows though our property. We experienced 100 mph winds and over 15 ft storm surge.

We lost nearly everything. All of our vehicles (tractor, gator, golf cart, mowers, trailers, tools) were flooded and could be damaged beyond repair. All our fish died.

We lost all but 66 of our chickens.

We think we salvaged a few bee hives. All our fruit trees are damaged and not sure yet when we will know extent of damage. All our produce was destroyed. All of our seeds and coconut coir media (with all other media) was contaminated by the surge that penetrated all of buildings from 4 to 8 feet deep.

It will take several months just to clean up before trying to fix our systems. Our steel framed barn will need a few side panels replaced but salvageable. Our market area buildings will need new flooring and some wall / roof repairs. Our team lunch / locker space building will need replaced - total loss. Our maintenance building will need significant repairs. Our produce packaging building will need to be replaced as it has significant water damage and roof damage. Our green house structure needs demolished. All our pumps and generators need replaced. All our piping, tanks and shade cloth and structure in our aquaponic system will need repaired / replaced.

The entire farm was under water. We are devastated.

Please help us rebuild our sustainable farm so we can all work together to help save our earth. Keep us in your hearts and prayers as we rebuild.

All funds received will be used to rebuild our farm. Thank you for your help.