The Producers, a Food Podcast. · A Deep in the Weeds Production

AgriCULTURED Special Series Episode 2 - Wouter Sels (Seven Springs Farm) - an isolated life rich in connection

·31 min·2 clips

Wouter argues small farms are “more productive” per hectare and less likely to cut corners.

1. The Producers episode follows Wouter Sells at Seven Springs Farm in Larinna, Tasmania, where the farm sits among forests, terraces, creeks, and seven year-round springs. 2. Wouter Sells is the farmer and grower, Dani Vallant hosts The Producers, and Seven Springs Farm matters because it supplies households, chefs, and the family itself. 3. The episode asks what a small farm can do when it tries to integrate vegetables, livestock, seeds, water, and family life on one property. 4. Wouter says Seven Springs Farm grows vegetables, beans, wheat, livestock, forestry, and agroforestry, and he also runs a nursery and saves seed from many cultivars. 5. He says the property is a valley-like bowl with high rainfall, year-round creeks, and seven springs that run slower in summer and bigger in winter. 6. Wouter describes living there with his partner, three homeschooled children aged 5, 9, and 10, and a few local workers who help on the farm. 7. He says he used to run a CSA farm in Belgium before meeting Elise, who came as a woofing volunteer and later became his partner in Tasmania. 8. Wouter says he shipped his tractors and equipment in containers when he moved from Belgium to Tasmania. 9. He links his farming philosophy to biodynamics, agroforestry, and a resistance to calling everything “regenerative” even though he accepts its aim. 10. He says self-sufficiency comes from a long family history of vegetable growing, cereals, livestock, and milk production in Belgium. 11. Wouter contrasts that older mixed model with his parents’ specialization and “mega greenhouse” approach, which he says brought benefits but also degradation. 12. He argues that support functions on a farm, even when they do not make much money, are essential for sustaining both the farm and the food system. 13. He says small farms are more likely to stay accountable because they face the people who eat their produce directly. 14. He says the farm uses wood for cooking, heating, and hot water, plus solar, a battery bank, a diesel generator backup, and a hydro installation. 15. He says the farm grows wheat for bread and pasta, keeps chickens and goats, and also collaborates with a neighbor for cow’s milk when needed. 16. He describes seed saving as a major part of the operation, with around 30 to 40 cultivars selected and saved on site. 17. The episode’s tone is reflective and practical, with Wouter giving long, detailed answers about land, crops, family, and systems. 18. The format is an interview built around farming methods, succession, and the daily logistics of a small Tasmanian farm. 19. Listeners interested in small-scale vegetable growing and farm systems will get the most from this episode. 20. Listeners wanting fast-paced food trends or short answers may skip it.

As heard by us

A grounded farm portrait where soil care and place carry the story.

Wouter Sells' visit to Seven Springs Farm treats farming as a lived arrangement between land, family, and the people who cook and eat the harvest.

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Why you'd press play

If you want a farm story that moves from soil care to restaurant plates, press play now.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

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