meaning behind valor
To Founder and Owner Patrick Hansen, Valor Farms isn't just a lifelong dream of his. The name itself has true significance to someone special in his life.
Patrick's late grandfather was a World War II Veteran and after his passing Patrick and the rest of his family realized what a true hero this man was. He had served in the Army during WWII and was on the ground in Germany. During his time in country, Patrick's grandfather's unit had earned a Silver Star and his grandfather had also personally been awarded a Bronze Star for Valor.
Patrick and his grandfather had a special bond as they were the only two members of the family that had served in the military at the time of his passing.
To honor his late grandfather's valor, service and dedication Patrick named the company Valor Farms.
about valor
Valor Farms started as a dream 12 years ago by Founder & Owner Patrick. He spent the last 10 years researching and building his skills as a skilled tradesman with the goal of, one day, starting his own farm.
By the end of summer 2019, that vision started to become a reality when Patrick designed and built his first home-based aquaponics system with 24 blue tilapia and a bunch of seeds. In the months to follow, he would redesign his system 3 times and add a 2nd system and another 24 tilapia.
Patrick has successfully grown various lettuce such as Parris Island, Red Romaine, Rudy Red, Black Seeded Simpson & Buttercrunch lettuce as well as swiss chard, oregano, parsley, dill, jasmine rice, banana peppers, cayenne peppers, jalepeno peppers and bell peppers.
The goal is to build our own custom automation system and also design and implement our own, custom green technology to make our company more eco-friendly and sustainable.
current operation
Our current operation is run out of Victory Christian Academy in West Allis, WI in partnership with the school and their agricultural program.
A portion of the proceeds from all sales from the produce grown at the school goes back to the school and its students.
Currently, we grow:
green leaf lettuce, red leaf lettuce, green oak leaf lettuce, red oak leaf lettuce, romaine lettuce, butterhead lettuce, kale, arugula, spinach and swiss chard.
We are also currently cultivating our tomatoes, bell peppers, jalapenos and cucumbers for harvest in late 2022/early 2023.
healthy greens
grown sustainably
The purpose of Valor Farms is to grow 100% natural fruits and vegetables using the most sustainable methods; hydroponics and aquaponics.
Both methods uses 95% less water than conventional farming, eliminates the need for harmful chemicals and pesticides and provides us the ability to grow vegetables year round despite Wisconsin's harsh winters.
PHASE 1 (Current)
In this phase, the goal is to raise a minimum of $10,000 to build a custom hydroponics system in southeast Wisconsin in approximately 2,000 sq ft, which will allow us to grow and sell thousands of pounds of the healthiest greens in the area.
PHASE 2 (2023)
This phase will require us to raise a minimum of $150,000 to build and construct a fish farm building and also build our first 2 greenhouses for our aquaponics system. This facility will also give us the opportunity to start farming yellow perch and perform valuable research in sustainably breeding and raising our own yellow perch for conservation.
building community
& partnerships
One of the missions of Valor is to work with our local organizations and build a community to share knowledge and resources to create a better world.
We have decided to start by working with Victory Christian Academy in Milwaukee to help their students in the area of science and agriculture.
To start, we built a small, custom aquaponics and hydroponics display at the 2022 Wisconsin State Fair to showcase what we will be bringing to VCA in the near future.
Working alongside their dedicated staff, we will be helping to create a first of its kind agricultural program through the use of aquaponics and hydroponics that will be incorporated in their middle school and high school programs.
conservation
through aquaponics
Another mission of Valor is to help in the conservation of our natural resources. That is why we will plan on fish farming yellow perch. Through our fish farm, we will be able to develop a research and development wing through our 501c3 organization, Valor Foundation, to create a sustainable method to breeding and raising yellow perch.
This farming will not only help Valor financially through the sales of fish to restaurants and stores, but we plan on working with the Department of Natural Resources to help restock local rivers, ponds and lakes of this beautiful fish.