Spilling the Tea on Decades of Success

What Angela Macke has learned from over 20 years of running Light of Day Organics

By Geri Dietze | Sept. 19, 2026

For Angela Macke, tea is a healing journey, a ceremony, a spiritual awakening, and a way of life. But she had little idea of what she was starting back in 2003 when she founded what has become Light of Day Organic Farm and Tea Shop on her Leelanau Peninsula farm.

The registered nurse, mother, and tea drinker was searching for a holistic remedy for an autoimmune condition, and to avoid the toxins, including heavy metals and mold, that can contaminate mass market tea. After studying the properties, uses, history, and farming of tea, she began growing her own.

Soon, Macke was selling to local restaurants and retailers. That list now includes Oryana Co-op, Omelette Shoppes, Higher Grounds, Crystal Mountain, Lobdell’s at Northwestern Michigan College, Trattoria Stella, The Cook’s House, The University of Michigan, and many more. (Light of Day bulk organic tea is currently found in 40 restaurants.)

Realizing “within a year” that she would need more land, Macke added 13.25 acres in 2007, and close to 50 acres in 2016. In fact, she says, “we consistently average growth of approximately…16-19 percent every year.”

A Miracle Business

Today, Light of Day boasts a collection of 68 sustainably packaged loose leaf teas, blends, matcha, and tisanes that are sold exclusively via their website and at the farm retail shop to keep pricing “as low as possible.”

Macke says that all “true” tea comes from one plant—Camellia sinensis—be it white, yellow, green, oolong, black, or red, and “is typically grown where palm trees grow” she explains. This “miracle of agriculture” here in northern Michigan, where there is nary a palm tree to be found, is accomplished in unheated hoophouses. Snow even provides insulation in the off season.

The style of tea is determined based on the parts plucked, the time of year they are harvested, and then other factors like oxidation and firing.

There are well over a dozen favorites on Light of Day’s menu, including Creamy Earl Grey blend, Matcha (powder and vegan capsules), In the Mood?, Hummingbird Nectar, Heartwarming Cinnamon, and Leelanau Licorice, just to name a few.

Over the years, the company’s blends have been put to some pretty innovative uses. For example, Short’s Brewery produces Hot Loins, a 6.9 ABV experimental aphrodisiac ale, based on Light of Day’s In the Mood? tea blend including ginger, cinnamon, and rosehips, and so much more. It was a 2025 Silver Medalist at the prestigious Colorado Great American Beer Fest event for commercial brewers.

Light of Day blends also end up in Patricia’s Chocolate, of Grand Haven, for those tea lovers with a sweet tooth. Newer products include a tea-based kombucha in partnership with Bailey’s Kombucha. And in mid-2027, look for Good to Go, a rich blend supporting men’s health.

Down on the Farm

More than two decades after the farm’s founding, Macke grows over 100 crops: apples, stone fruits, berries, and olives; asparagus, greens, and garden staples; herbs, flowers, and spices; clover and alfalfa; whole grains; fodder, grassland, and hay; oil crops from flax to sunflower; and organic white, green, black, and oolong tea.

Other ingredients are outsourced from certified organic providers: North African Rooibos, for example, and Muira Puama from the Amazon rainforest.

It takes nine pounds of leaves, “give or take a few ounces” to produce one pound of tea. So for Macke, harvesting is a daily practice from March to mid-October of gathering five to eight 5-gallon buckets of leaves.

Production stages include “withering” on baker’s racks in the shade with a fan; the “art” of rolling and ironing; firing to dehydrate in low temperature ovens, then “careful handling, blending, and packaging to prevent breakage of fragile, precious whole leaf ingredients.”

This is a labor of love, for sure, but Macke is blunt about the process: “Hand picking is extremely labor-intensive; I suspect that no one in their right mind would want to work this hard.”

But Macke hasn’t taken any shortcuts. Light of Day Organics is the only tea farm in Michigan and one of a handful of biodynamic operations in the state. It’s also the only one in North America with this impressive collection of certifications: USDA Organic Certification, Demeter Biodynamic (the original regenerative farming model), Made in Michigan, and Fair Trade direct-to-farm sourcing.

Lessons Learned

Success comes in many forms: awards and accolades, magazine, book, and TV features, plus the rewards of hosting thousands of guests—approximately 117,000 so far in 2026. (Tea workshops, farm tours, and other events end in September, but mark your calendar for next year’s growing season to get the whole experience.)

But Macke counts success in other ways as well: Her sons have committed to guiding Light of Day into the next generation, and she values the many working relationships built over the years, as well as “the joy and peace…that comes from fulfilling work.”

Still, farming is not for the faint of heart. “Losing a hoophouse [and the plants inside] due to storms or massive snowfall is heartbreaking,” Macke says. And training a staff (usually between eight and 12 employees) can be challenging because of the depth and breadth of knowledge and skills involved. But she works hard to impart her 24 years of experience, including her Specialty Tea Institute Training, continuous education on historical plant medicine and botanicals, and knowledge of landscape design and architecture. (She also maintains her RN licensure.)

But the biggest lesson learned? “Follow your heart, your intuition, your passion,” she says. “[D]on’t wait for permission—just go for it. We all have a unique gift to share.”

For Macke, “healthcare and regenerative farming have been my calling and my passion,” she adds. “Light of Day has become a [community] platform to share the things that matter most.”

Reading the Future in the Tea Leaves

What’s next for Light of Day Organics?

They are currently certifying with True Organic and Michigan Environmentally Certified Farm, part of the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (MDARD). Solar arrays reduce the farm’s footprint, and its website touts that they’ve been “powered by sunshine since 2008.”

The addition of hoofed animals will maximize biodynamic fertilization (and provide another reason to visit this beautiful place.) Other plans include the construction of a new residence and worker housing.

Plus, the Macke sons are developing Light of Day tea bags to expand its reach and to enter the grocery market.

Visit Light of Day Organic Farm & Tea Shop at 3502 E Traverse Hwy. in Traverse City. lightofdayorganics.com