Inspiring Conversations with Rodger Roeser of Roeser’s Elderberry Farm

Today we’d like to introduce you to Rodger Roeser.

Hi Rodger, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Growing up as a child in a fairly rural part of Erie County, my grandparents had a small, working farm. They had the standard things like horses, cows, chickens and for crops, generally raised soybeans, corn and hay. But, my grandmother, Lois, had a small patch of elderberries that she took care of and harvested them each fall for several years. She enjoyed canning them and every year, for Thanksgiving and Christmas, the family was always treated with her amazing elderberry pie. It was a treat, and as a child, I always remember how much I absolutely loved that pie. After she passed, in a sort of remembrance of her, we planted a few elderberry bushes, not really thinking much about it. I harvested them, and finally realized all of the time and effort it took to get those infernal berries off that bush. I finally realized all the love that actually went into making those humble pies that delighted us so much, so it was then and there that, in her honor, we decided to forge forward with Roeser’s Elderberry Farm. We now grow berries on our one acre of land in Lorain County, and while we sell fresh and dried in bulk, after dozens and dozens of requests, we started processing the berries and making our own brand of elderberry syrup, elderberry jelly, elderberry syrup kits, elderflower soaps, and various elderberry tea blends. We also have a line of herbal and elder elixirs that one can simply add to their spirit of their choice, such as vodka, brandy or bourbon (or vinegar for a nonalcoholic variety) for various vitality markers based on the herb concoction such as cardiovascular health, metabolic support or even cold and cough elixir. We are hoping to expand at some point, adding up to six more acres of berries, a larger production facility and a larger shop. The entrance to our current shop we affectionately refer to as “Lois Lane.”

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
When you’re dealing with Mother Nature, there are always challenges and struggles to overcome. Gardening and plants can be finicky and tricky. Too much water, not enough water, too much sun, not enough sun, and so on are constant battles. We’ve had droughts. We’ve had deluges. Fortunately, elderberries are rather resilient, and we’ve been blessed by and large with good, quality harvests for several years. There’s also a lot of learning that goes with it, so we dove headfirst into any learning opportunity we could find, purchased numerous books and watched just about every YouTube video about elderberries ever made. Humbly, now we’re giving presentations to groups. But anytime you start something, there’s going to be challenges. You never really know how the harvest will turn out. We’ve had birds almost decimate an entire crop one year. You also spend time perfecting your recipe and getting that just right as everything is hand crafted in small batches, so when you have a day job, the simple art of finding the time to do everything that needs done is a job in and of itself. But, we are committed and it’s something we have a deep passion, pride and love for.

As you know, we’re big fans of Roeser’s Elderberry Farm. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about the brand?
Honestly, right now it’s a side hustle that we hope to one day turn into a full-time job. The beauty of growing elderberries is they do most of the work over the course of the year. The harvest window is rather small, only about a month from August to September, so that month is beyond intense. It’s hard work. It’s tedious. The actual “making” of the goodies from the raw elderberries to finished jellies and syrups, is just done as you go. We immediately dehydrate the berries from our daily harvest and those are easily stored until we need them. In my “real” job, I’m the CEO of a marketing and public relations firm, The Eisen Agency, so that expertise has enabled us to do our branding, do our marketing, do our positioning without having to hire any outside sources. This experience and expertise has helped tremendously in our product launches, trade shows, and in setting up our shop and properly marketing our goodies, as well as adding lines where we see opportunities. Our items are all locally grown, locally hand crafted in small batches, taste amazing and are genuinely good for your overall wellness journey because of the amazing powers of the elderberry. We are 100 percent organic, no herbicides, no pesticides. And, we pick every single berry by hand.

What matters most to you?
Integrity. My last name is on every product we sell, and as my pappy always said, “I gave you that last name. Don’t screw it up.” We take incredible pride in our products and we know all the love and work and passion that went into crafting each and every item. We aren’t some huge factory churning things out for big box stores. We’re a husband and wife team that are committed to putting the very best products out that we can, and to share our love of elderberries, from a health standpoint and a taste standpoint, to as many people as possible.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.RoesersElderberryFarm.godaddysites.com
• Facebook: https://Facebook.com/RoesersElderberryFarm
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/roeser-s-elderberry-farm/