Meet the Morras
Why We Do What We Do
We are the Morra Family. We started Bethlehem Farm to provide our family a means for purposeful work. We also started the farm to eat the cleanest food possible to impact our health and well being. We are a Christian family whose desire is to glorify God in all we do. We raise our family, our animals and all our food in the healthiest way we know. We consistently strive to learn more each day to produce food in the manner it was intended. We developed most of the bread and pizza recipes we make. We are motivated by some health challenges and a desire to live a more simple life for the Glory of God
The Family
Meet the Parents:
Thom and Nancy
Meet the Kids;
TJ, Rose, Grace and Gabriel
In Loving Memory
On August 2nd, 2014 we lost our Dear Alison to breast cancer. Thom lost a faithful and loving wife while TJ and Rose lost their Mother and best friend. Alison was the motivation for starting the farm. Her health challenges caused us all to examine the many toxins in our food, what we eat and how food can contribute to our health and well being. This is why we feed our animals the cleanest food we can. Alison lived well fighting her cancer and we believe our efforts paid off. We have decided to press on and continue our labors on the farm to feed others who are looking for the best food possible for their families. We look forward to the day when we will be united again as a family in the new heavens and on the new earth. Until that time we will continue to labor and remember Alison in all we do.
Frequently Asked questions
Why don't you choose to use Organic Feed for you Pastured Poultry?
There was a time when the term "Organic" meant more than what it does today. We noticed more farmers moving away from Organic practices in favor of "chemical free" practices. According to the University of California at Berkley, "...under the laws of most states, Organic suppliers are allowed to use a wide variety of chemical sprays and powders on their crops." We called our Organic feed supplier and they could not guarantee that their products, though Organic, were chemical free.
After contacting several other feed suppliers, we found Dawson Gap Farm. They are a LOCAL, family farm that has developed a CERTIFIED CHEMICAL FREE (yes, they actually tested it!), NON-GMO, SOY-FREE poultry feed. The feed is Non-Gmo Project Verified and is sourced from local producers and are the only producers who certify that their feed is Chemical Free. We have come to believe that this is even better than Organic
What is the difference between the Cornish Cross meat chicken (which is the standard in the meat industry) and a Freedom Ranger bird you grow?
The Freedom Ranger chicken is more of a heritage (traditional) chicken breed which are slower to grow then the standard Cornish Cross. The Freedom Ranger chicken is adapted well to a more organic free range environment. They are an active breed which we believe is a healthy alternative to the industry standard
Why do you bake your breads and pizzas in a wood fired brick oven?
Thom was raised in an Italian family in Northern NJ. He grew up on New York style pizza and set out to share that authentic pizza taste and style for his family. He was striving for a way to do this when upon driving home from vacation many years ago he saw a man baking pizzas in a wood fired brick oven. Long story short several weeks later that man and his son were building our first Pompeii style wood fired brick oven (as seen on our home page). This oven allows us to bake our pizzas at 900 degrees which is necessary for the crust to crisp and the cheese to melt. We bake directly on the floor of our oven (both our pizzas and breads) and that is one way we are able to get that old world taste and style.