Tucked into the Peace River region of northern Alberta, La Crete isn’t a place most people stumble into by accident. It’s remote a Mennonite farming community more than 700 kilometers north of Edmonton, where the growing season is short but the summer daylight stretches long, and where generations of families have built their lives around the land.

Herman Peters is one of them. Herman Peters has lived here for his entire life. In October 2025, we were lucky enough to visit Herman’s organic farm just before the winter snow came in.

It’s a delicate balance, farmed the organic way: no shortcuts, no synthetic fixes, just decades of watching the sky, reading the ground, and adjusting.

And soon, this whole farm will be a carpet of snow which will remain dormant till spring. Northern Alberta becomes rigidly cold in the winter. So before that happens, we wanted to walk this land with Herman and visit him for the first time to show us firsthand how our organic ingredients are grown so that we can bring his story to you.

The Smith family visiting Hermans farm in Alberta (2025) 

We cherish our relationship with Herman, he nurtures his organic crops with the same care we put into every product One Degree makes.

But producing the best gluten-free, organic sprouted oats is not just about how they are farmed or the care we take in preparing and packaging them for you and your family. Mother Nature plays a role too.

Canada’s prairie provinces are famous for producing some of the best oats in the world. And Herman’s farm in La Crete, Alberta is especially well-suited to oat farming. He mentioned that the soil is soft and requires a lot of water to stay nourished. Depending on how much it rains Herman also highlighted that you can see moss in some parts of his field too.

Kathy & Stan Smith speaking with Herman on his farm in Alberta 

Favorable climate and long daylight hours are only part of what makes Alberta special. The area is also home to a strong network of organic oat farmers who support one another. Organic farming is more than an occupation here- it is a way of life. And the strength of Herman’s community comes out in the quality of the oats he grows.

Herman Peters freshly harvested farm which will soon be covered in winter snow 

We take our commitment to transparency seriously. Telling you where your food comes from and who is behind it is part of who we are. As our founder, Stan Smith says, “One Degree isn’t a product with a story. One Degree is a story with a product.”

That is why we’re so proud to introduce Herman Peters to you-and why we hope to tell you more about them soon.