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Vallejo Couple Avoids Grocery Stores, Restaurants For A Year

VALLEJO (CBS13) -- From meat to veggies to snacks -- a Vallejo couple stayed away from grocery stores and restaurants for an entire year.

Tom Ferguson and his wife Rachel made a pact a year ago to survive off of their own land.

"We've got radishes, carrots Brussels sprouts, peppers, tomatoes, winter squash, summer squash, parsnips, cabbage, cauliflower," Rachel says.

That meant no trips to the grocery store or sit-down meals at a restaurant … for the next 365 days.

"Because we want to control our own food, we want to know where it comes from," Rachel explains.

They achieved their goal this week.

This isn't just a small garden. This couple has over 75 different varieties of fruits and vegetables all right here on a quarter acre of land in the middle of Vallejo.

And that's not all.

"We got rabbits, chickens, turkeys and goats," Rachel says

It takes the couple at least an hour a day to maintain what they've come to love, from feeding the animals to watering the garden. And let's not forget actually cooking the food.

"It wasn't easy at first," Tom admits

But it's become routine for Tom and Rachel. And they feel healthier.

"We wanted to eat better, we wanted to get away from processed foods as much as possible," Rachel says.

But that didn't mean there weren't urges to cheat. "Oh yeah, and I teased her about it all the time."

All this work has paid off. This year they've saved $9,000 dollars.

"It's a hobby. You have to love to do it," Rachel says. "People think we are crazy, but we're not and it's completely doable. Anybody can do it."

And even though their challenge is over, the lesson they've learned now grows right in front of them.

"I want it to last forever. I really, really enjoy doing this," Tom says.

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