Otter Oaks Farm was founded by Soraya Alem in 2021 with the intention of growing food with regenerative and closed-loop farming practices, feeding the community while passing on knowledge, creating connections; and sharing resources. After two successful years cultivating on a half acre at Windy City Farmʼs incubator space, Otter Oaks has found success growing diversified vegetables and distributing them through a CSA model, wholesale aggregator, and at two local farmerʼs markets.

In 2024 Otter Oaks became a partner of The Conservation Fund's Working Farms Fund, signing a lease for a 40-acre property in Woodstock, Illinois. Over the next five years, TCF and Otter Oaks will work to have a conservation easement placed on the property, at which time Otter Oaks will have the opportunity to purchase the farm property at a reduced price.

Otter Oaks has planned a thoughtful transition to the new farm, which includes continuing to farm at their urban incubator site during the 2025 season while subletting the Woodstock property to an established tenant. This sublet will allow Otter Oaks an opportunity to do repairs, install new infrastructure, and build up soil health before transitioning cultivation to the property in 2026, and moving to the property in 2027. During this time, as the primary lease-holder, Otter Oaks will be responsible for property upkeep and maintenance, including repairs and landscape work. A low-interest loan from Foodshed Capital will provide Otter Oaks working capital to maintain the sublet home and landscaping during this transition period.