Thyme for BusinessFeb 28, 2025
It’s that special time of year again, Herb Pharm’s birthday! We’ve just turned 46, and are so proud to continue our work caring for people, plants, and the planet. This year, our birthday also falls on International Women’s Day, so we think it’s the perfect time to pay an extra special tribute to Herb Pharm co-founder Sara Katz.
For Sara, herbalism is more than just a career, it’s a way of life. It all started in her youth when she was a caretaker on a farm in West Virginia and started picking wild plants for a local co-op. She was captivated by the power of herbs like Goldenseal, Dandelion, Yellow Dock, Plantain, and Horehound.
This calling led her to Oregon, where she would eventually start Herb Pharm with Ed Smith in 1979. Sara credits Ed as her first herbal mentor, saying “he had the most amazing way of understanding and explaining the action of herbs in the body.” Rosemary Gladstar also played a pivotal role, inspiring her with kindness and a strong sense of community.
Today, Sara offers that same spark to other budding herbalists with this advice:
Over the years, Sara became an inspiring female voice in herbalism. Plants have largely been the domain of women, “the tenders of home, hearth, and garden,” says Sara. Thinking of the future, she continued, “I see the opportunity for women to shine light on the beauty, gentleness, and deep traditions of using plants for support.”
Beyond building a wildly successful company, Sara was instrumental in creating Herb Pharm’s Herbaculture Internship Program to educate the next generation of herbalists and herb farmers. In 2019, Sara was also recognized for her outstanding leadership with the Herbal Pioneer Award by the American Herbal Products Association. “If you work and walk with a greater purpose, the way forward will unfold,” she says.
St. John’s Wort and Propolis hold special places in Sara’s herbal journey. St. John’s Wort, with its bright yellow flowers, fascinated her. This sunny plant grows in Oregon's Siskiyou and Cascade mountains, just above our farms. It blooms in the summer around the solstice.
As for Propolis, she loves this bee-derived ingredient! Our Soothing Throat Spray remains a staple in her travel kit.
Outside of her professional accolades, we think Sara’s success and influence comes from her genuine heart. We’re so honored to be part of her legacy! While Ed and Sara have since handed the baton to our CEO Daniel Marple, they remain influential to our operations via the board of directors.
We’re keeping the kind, quality-focused, and ecologically responsible culture alive at Herb Pharm today, and we're pleased to say we’re the #1 brand of liquid herbal extracts and the world’s first Regenerative Organic Certified® herb farm.‡
In reflection of our 46th birthday, we’re proud of all we’ve accomplished in another year of tremendous growth. Here’s a quick snapshot of everything we have to celebrate:
Altogether, we grew, tended, and harvested
of herbs on our Regenerative Organic Certified® farms.
We welcomed
to our farms over 3 sessions – and have educated over 1,000+ future herbalists to date.
We launched a brand new product line, Mushroom Wellness™, including an impressive selection of mushroom-based support.
We donated
to charities, nonprofits, and worthy causes that align with our values.
We upgraded
to be 100% Regenerative Organic Certified®.
We sponsored
all over the country and hosted nearly 275 neighbors at 7 community events on our farms.
We volunteered
towards land clean-up events to increase biodiversity and restore native habitats in our community.
All in all, we launched
with options to support your evolving herbal needs including 3 new capsules (Guayusa, Pomegranate, and Triphala), The Kids Herbal Explorer Collection, and our Mushroom Wellness™ line.
We hosted
of our Regenerative Organic Certified® farms, including 2 public tours and 12 private tours.
As always, growing another year older hasn’t slowed us down one bit. Looking to the future, we’re excited and optimistic about where herbalism will lead us all. In true Herb Pharm style, we’re following the north star values set by Sara and Ed, and can’t wait to unveil even more worth celebrating. You can look forward to more amazing partnerships, products, and formats to come – along with more herbal education and joy to be shared along the way. We’re forever grateful for your support, cheers to 46 years!
Don't forget! Check your Rewards account for coupons.
CHECKOUT
You are about to leave the Herb Pharm website. The website will open in a new browser window.
This resource is shared purely for informational purposes and not as a direct endorsement.
Please select "CONTINUE" to continue to the website, or close this box to return to herb-pharm.com.
