Country Life Special Section • Wednesday, July 8, 2015
Behind a barn’s restoration
Gardening • CL2 4-H • CL3 Dairy • CL3
Ag groups create ‘story map’ with historic perspective They hope it can be a tool for communication WHATCOM — Three local agriculture-based organizations have cooperated to develop an interactive, webbased educational tool giving timely information and a historic perspective of the local farm community and economy.
questions and ideas that can help shape future efforts of the Ag Water Board. The Story Map is housed on the AWB’s website at agwaterboard.com/storymap. Access to the Story Map is also available on the home pages of Whatcom Farm Friends (www.wcfarmfriends.com/) and the Whatcom Conservation District (www.whatcomcd.org/. “Farmers need to better communicate who we are and
Drivers on State Route 9 at Acme will notice the old Stephens/Dickey barn being carefully restored. (Courtesy photo)
Acme Valley Foods says barn represents a valued heritage to be built upon today By Jack Petree for the Lynden Tribune
ACME — Recognized as a Centennial Farm by Washington State in 1989, the Stephens/Dickey Farm at Acme was founded in 1884. In 1927 a barn complex was constructed to support dairy and other farming operations on the 150-plus acres just north of town. When the founders of Acme Valley Foods acquired the Stephens/Dickey farm in 2011, the old barn was fast approaching the day when the historic structure would either come crashing
down or have to be taken down for safety. Acme Valley management decided neither option was acceptable. According to Dave Green, president of the firm, “People just don’t build these types of barns anymore. We felt the barn represented a heritage that really shouldn’t be lost.” Saving the barn and all the history the structure represents is a concept that fits into Acme Valley’s approach to doing business. “Acme Valley Foods feels very strongly about the importance of locally grown and processed food,” Green said. “We have made significant investments in building production capability locally that allows us to provide real local jobs and great local food.” Combining the need for production facilities with the opportunity to preserve a heritage barn seemed a logical approach to the company’s management
team. As a company, Acme Valley Farms is relatively new to Whatcom County. Established in 2013, the company is already making its mark on the rural economy. Employing 25 people, the firm represents, Green says, “a group of artisan food producers working together to provide great local food.” The company is currently producing alpine-style soft cheeses, under the Acme Farms label; fresh, cured and smoked meats under the Jack Mountain Meats label; ice cream under the Acme Ice Cream label; and Granola under the Chuckanut Crunch label. “We are in the planning stages of building out a local bakery operation that will also be located in Acme,” he added. According to Green, his firm purchases milk for both the company’s See Barn on CL4
The “Story Map,” backed by Whatcom Farm Friends, the Ag Water Board (AWB) and the Whatcom Conservation District, was unveiled on Monday. The “Story Map” allows users to interactively explore pertinent information on today’s farms and the history of how the county developed into such a productive farming area. The system allows opportunity for feedback,
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what challenges our future,” said Ag Water Board president Scott Bedlington. “The AWB invested in developing this communication tool for both our own planning purposes and as a window for the public on what is going on around them on our farms.” Watershed Improvement Districts now cover nearly 70,000 acres of Whatcom See Story on CL4