180 Degree Farm

Scott Tyson remembers, “It was a gut punch when we first learned of his diagnosis. I remember calling my mother and pastor after we got the news and I had a hard time even speaking to them. I couldn’t get words to exit my mouth.” Scott’s young son, Mason, had cancer.

At three years of age, Mason was diagnosed with stage 4 Neuroblastoma. He had surgery to remove the tumor, but still had cancer cells in his lymph nodes. Scott says, “We met with his pediatric oncologist and learned of the potential side effects of the chemo and radiation treatment he was recommending. It was staggering!” Scott began researching Mason’s type of cancer and learned how important nutrition was in healing the body.

Scott explains, “Basically, we did a 180 and started juicing organic veggies or eating as much as we could raw or fermented, using healthy fats like organic olive oil, pasture raised organic butter, avocado oil and avoiding heavily processed oils like vegetable oils, canola oils, etc. He also ate small portions of pasture raised/grass fed organic meat.” He goes on to say, “Ideally, his plate should look like this; a vegetable entree, a side of meat, and a side of a healthy grain like organic quinoa or organic brown rice. We believe changing his diet, though rather painful considering he was four at the time, was a catalyst for his healing without chemo. You can’t fight cancer or the side effects of your treatment without it.”

Seventeen years later, Mason is cancer free. The Tyson family learned much on their journey, but most of all they learned they wanted to help people. Nicole, Mason’s mom, shares, “From the beginning we wanted to educate and provide the food we couldn’t find to our community. We are also passionate about prevention and what better way to prevent than to make our food available to as many possible, including cancer patients that do not financially need to participate in the Food Fight Program.”

They already had the property to start 180° Farm located in Coweta County. The name comes from the journey of making a 180° turn in their lifestyle to help their son. Today, they offer organic fruits, vegetables, and eggs, and conduct free educational classes on nutrition.

Farm treasurer Brent Anderson notes commerce comes from the organic vegetables that 180 grows which are made available for sale during normal farmer’s market hours on Tuesdays and Saturdays. “Commerce funds our operational costs, including seed, compost, drip irrigation, amendments and mulch,” he says. The farm typically brings in $60,000 to $80,000 a year through market sales.

Mason says he loves the farm his family started. “My emotional and spiritual ties run deep, and I’ve learned that life isn’t quite the same when I’m away.”
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