2011 Farmbook [#024 Special]

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r e s e n t s

2011

Meet members of the pennsylvania association for sustainable agriculture, working to bring fresh, delicious food to local eaters

Turning Roots Farm

does the chicken dance • page 6

Two Gander Farm’s bee-line to the city • page 10 Table Talk PASA member restaurants dish

on their partners • page 22

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from PASA’s executive

d i r e c to r

For Food Safety, Go Local!

Over the past two years, few topics have re-

ceived such consistent national attention as food safety, with recalls of everything from spinach, tomatoes and sprouts to hamburger, eggs and even peanuts.

Of great interest has been the extent to which the size, location and distribution patterns of production and processing facilities affect the severity of the threat to the public.

Do you care where your food comes from and how it was produced? If not, then you needn’t read any further, especially if you also believe our state and federal governments have sufficient knowledge and power to keep us safe, or that it’s even desirable if they could. But if you do care, you’ll want to consider one of the relatively unsung advantages of buying your food as locally as possible.

When I speak of “local,” I mean in terms of the farms that produce your food, the facilities where it may get processed and the retail locations where it is purchased. If all three are within a “stone’s throw,” as they say, of your home, you and your family can partake with greater confidence that the food is safe, and that problems will almost immediately be identified and addressed if not.

If your food is not procured, produced and processed locally, then let me proffer that your risk is greater. Your relationship with the entire value chain, from “field to fork” as we often hear, is diminished, just as the task of tracking and solving food safety threats becomes more difficult.

This is to say nothing yet of the risk to the public at large when a particular food item is distributed to 30 or 40 states before a problem becomes apparent… or the economic loss to communities in all of those states when their food dollars leave town, with only the illusion of wealth left behind.

Simply put, even without the occurrence of a food safety incident, we are already pummeled by a poor risk/benefit ratio when the food we eat is shipped across the country, or even around the world, on its way to our dinner tables.

You can take the first steps toward keeping your families safe, strengthening your communities, saving farmland that you can even bike to on a Saturday afternoon, and improving your quality of life in general, by supporting local farms and retailers featuring locally produced and processed foods each and every time you shop!

Brian Snyder Executive Director Pennsylvania Association for Sustainable Agriculture (PASA) www.pasafarming.org

c o v e r p h oto by a l b e r t y e e

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Seven Stars Farm

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locati on

Phoenixville, Pa.

contac t

sevensta rsfarm.c om

specia lty

organic yogurt

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X1992x

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h os e da r k , so u l f u l e y e s , t h os e

curvaceous horns, those thick, lustrous eyelashes. Beautiful may not be the first word that springs to mind when pondering a cow, but the Jerseys at Phoenixville’s Seven Stars Farm are absolutely gorgeous. The herd of 70 produces organic, grass-fed milk for the farm’s simple, delicious yogurt — the recipe for which includes nothing more than milk and cultures.

Edie and David Griffiths have worked the land across from the Kimberton Waldorf School for 23 years, thanks to a longterm lease with the school. When they moved from New York state, they started making a small amount of yogurt. At the time, the property hosted a farm store — it eventually moved and became the local institution Kimberton Whole Foods (no affiliation with the chain).

“We had the trucks coming from distributors,” recalls Edie. “They started picking up our yogurt. We were one of the first organic dairies around.” At the time, their herd was mostly Guernseys and red-andwhite Holsteins, but they needed higher milk fat content for the yogurt, so they transitioned to those comely Jerseys.

Edie has an easy, infectious laugh, and her gentle touch is instantly apparent. On this particular morning, she — and her fulltime helper Mark Dunphy — are correcting a magnesium imbalance in a new mother. She cradles the cow’s head as a makeshift IV is administered; the day-old calf sleeps at its mother’s feet. Ten years ago, David had a serious farming accident which left him in a wheelchair. Mark came on board to help out, and has been at Seven Stars since. The business has continued to grow.

“We’ve never really advertised,” she says. “It’s really been word of mouth. We’ve got people who move to a different part of the country, can’t find [our yogurt], and they get all distraught. They’ve become addicted! [laughs] We get wonderful letters from customers — ‘I never wrote a letter to a food company before’ — we get a lot of letters and phone calls.”

The famous yogurt is rich and creamy, but not overly thick, mimicking the European style. It tastes of the very essence of milk, undercut by the tang of the cultures’ work. The flavored varieties — they make only vanilla and maple — are just the slightest bit sweet, allowing the simple, humble pleasures of the product to shine.

Seven Stars Farm is certified organic, but the Griffiths also practice biodynamics — functioning on the principle that the whole farm should operate as a single organism. Edie and David actually met in England at a course on biodynamics. p h otos by dan m u r p h y

Leaving the horns on is something people just don’t really do anymore. Everyone comes to our farm, and they think we have a barn full of bulls.

—Edie Griffiths “We don’t buy in cattle,” says Edie. “We raise our own. And we raise as much feed as we can. What we’re really doing is looking to enhance the vitality of the soil and the animals. For example, leaving the horns on is something people just don’t really do anymore. Everyone comes to our farm, and they think we have a barn full of bulls.

“It is difficult to manage a herd of cows this size with horns,” she explains. “They do damage to each other. But, to me, when I look at them, they’re just so beautiful. But also, I (and other people) have noticed that [the horns] seem to do two things in a very real way. They help with their digestion somehow; they’re able to make good use out of everything they eat. And also, when it’s hot, hot summer, they act like little cooling towers.”

Happy, healthy cows — given plenty of rest, rotated on pasture, cared for with a gentle hand and staggering work ethic (Edie is up before 4 a.m. every day) — make for healthy, tasty yogurt.

“Routine is important to cows,” says Edie.

“It makes them very happy. I have to [take] them across the road to the other pasture; they walk single file. I had a guy stop one day and say, ‘I want my kids to behave like that.

Can you help me train my children?’”

It should come as no surprise that Edie agrees on the subject of her cows’ beauty.

“They’re born with makeup,” she says with a smile, her hand fingering the tuft of hair atop Sunny Sue’s horned head.

“They’ve already got the mascara. That’s what I love about Jerseys. We’ve bred some Swedish Reds; if I showed Edie Griffiths with you them you’d see the difference. Their eyes are kind full-time helper of like pigs’. [laughs] They don’t have the same big, Mark Dunphy beautiful eyes.” —Lee Stabert

Turning Roots farm

locati on

Downingtown, Pa.

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hris Henwood Costa and tj Costa

are educators by trade, so it’s kind of fitting that their first two years at Turning Roots Farm have been quite the learning experience. In the spring, the couple will leave their off-site jobs to farm full time, a giant step forward for this fledgling enterprise. If this is the next generation of small, sustainable growers — young, motivated and committed to a difficult and rewarding lifestyle — this movement has legs.

Turning Roots specializes in produce and eggs; they also keep bees. The Costas sow two vegetable plots, and the chickens have the run of the rest of the four-acre Chester County spread. They’re rotated on different sections of grass, foraging for bugs and other goodies.

“I’m a big egg-eater,” says TJ. “When we first started going to farmers markets and eating fresh eggs, I said, ‘Man, as soon as we have space…’ So, we started just for us. Pretty quickly, we got more and more chickens and started selling the eggs.”

X2009x

The precious orbs — cradling stunning yellow yolks — are available at their on-site farmstand and through a small egg CSA offered at a North Star Orchard (see p. 8) CSA pickup site. “At the stand, it’s just taken off,” says TJ “The flavor is fantastic. [This summer] we were transitioning between the two flocks and we had a little bit of lag time. We would have, maybe, two dozen in the fridge. A lot of people have gotten used to buying their eggs here, so everyone’s like, ‘Where are the eggs?!’”

Chris and TJ met during a medical training seminar while working for Outward Bound. “We’ve been very connected to nature for a long time, but it’s been such a shift turning to farming,” says TJ “The real connection to the season and the cycles is so much deeper on a farm.”

PASA was key in transforming their backburner ambitions into reality. Chris’ parents have a hay farm in central Pennsylvania, and they got involved with the organization.

One year, Chris accompanied them to the annual Farming for the Future conference; then TJ came along, too. “There’s a very ‘Yes, you can’ attitude,” recalls Chris. “It’s amazingly inspirational. We had these ideas before we met — that it would be cool to farm — but I used to think you had to marry a farmer to start farming. And that wasn’t happening.

I used to think you had to marry a farmer to start farming.

And that wasn’t happening. But then we started going to PASA, and there were all these farmers willing to share.

—chris Henwood costa 6

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Chris Henwood Costa and TJ Costa (opposite) and their chickens.

[laughs] But then we started going there, and there were all these farmers willing to share.”

As she talks, Chris reaches down and scoops up one of the brown layers darting past her legs. They call all their birds “Mama Girl,” but this was Henrietta — their very first hen. When they transitioned the flock, she got to stay. The older chickens went to a farm in Oxford, Pa. (a real farm, not a euphemism).

Chris and TJ are bracingly warm and thoughtful, so it’s not surprising to learn of their passion for meditation and yoga. The property’s spring house has been transformed into a private studio, and TJ has even considered offering private yoga classes at the farm.

“We’re interested in the contemplative piece of farming,” says Chris, “connecting more to ourselves and the land through the act of farming.” They’ve also begun experimenting with biodynamics.

The last two years have involved a lot of hard work and sacrifice, especially with them both working other jobs.

There were moments when it became overwhelming.

“It has always felt right to do this,” explains Chris.

“But there was a point at which we wondered, can we make a living? Should we just be homesteading? Because that’s the heart of what got us going on this — we wanted to be more connected to our food and we wanted to raise animals.”

But this year, as they continued to develop their skills and fine-tune the operation, things got better. “Something that turned the corner for me, this year, was the Lansdowne Farmers Market,” says TJ. “That market is, for us, what we really imagined ourselves doing at a farmers market. It’s this really diverse community; the people are awesome. They have music playing every week and art. And we started developing relationships. It’s actually really helpful for me to go down there — every time I go, I realize why we spend all the hours out here.”

“One woman told me, ‘You’re the reason we come to this market,’ ” adds Chris, putting her hand on her heart. “I think that’s the thing about this choice, and this life. It’s so real. It’s all right there in front of you.”

—Lee Stabert

Highspire hills Farm Glenmoore, Pa.

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eggs

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dreh meye r@ve rizon .net, 610-9 42-96 34

pasa membe r since

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ighspire Hills Farm’ s Duane Rehmeyer has

Duane

dubbed his henhouse “the chicken hotel.” “They check Rehmeyer in in,” he says. “And then they do check out at some point.” the coop.

Currently there are not quite 1,000 birds living in the grand old building behind his Glenmoore home.

The hotel was more of a hovel when he and his wife moved in almost 20 years ago.

“It was in a state of disrepair,” recalls Rehmeyer, an engineer by trade. “One of the ways I justified putting money into it was to have a business that we could use to write off the maintenance.”

Highspire Hills has something of a vintage business plan, selling only to nearby Kimberton Whole Foods (no affiliation with the chain), local restaurants and drive-up customers.

In another nod to old-school agriculture, Rehmeyer picks up unsellable fruits and vegetables from Kimberton Whole Foods weekly to augment the birds’ feed In July, Rehmeyer intalled — it’s one reason Highspire Hills’ the farm’s brand-new eggs are in such demand. solar rig (approximately “It’s been fun because we know 9,000 kWh). His electric bill our customers,” he adds. “My wife now averages around $10 and I are both convinced that per month, down from $200. people should know where their food comes from.”—Lee Stabert

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North Star Orchard locati on

Cochranville, Pa.

contact

northsta rorchard .com

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specia lty

apples, pears, peaches, vegetables

pasa membe r since

e don’t grow Red Delicious, Golden

Delicious, McIntosh or Granny Smith — you can get those anywhere,” says North Star Orchard’s Lisa Kerschner. “We have all different varieties. And some of them are what many people might consider odd-looking, even ugly. It takes some education, but people get hooked on it. At this point, people who know us come up and say, ‘Ooh! What’s that weird variety?’”

Lisa and her husband, Ike, started farming in 1992. They didn’t have a lot of money, but they were able to secure longterm leases on two properties, one in West Chester and one near Avondale. The Kerschners recently bought their first piece of land — the trees went into the ground in 2008.

Since his teenage years, Ike had always wanted an orchard.

“You can get into vegetables or even animals pretty quickly, but fruit trees take years, and infrastructure,” explains Lisa.

“Then you have years of training the trees, mowing, taking care of trees, and no income. So, it’s not something that can be entered into really easily. And I think that’s why there aren’t that many new orchards around.”

North Star has more than 100 varieties of tree fruits, though only (only!) 40 or 50 are currently in production.

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They specialize in new and old varieties alike.

But choosing a favorite is no easy task for Lisa.

“I love Goldrush apples [a new vari- Lisa Kerschner ety] and Golden Russet apples [an al- (above) watches most-400-year-old variety],” she mus- over her orchard. es. “There are a lot of plums out there — Rosy Gage is really fabulous. Then there are other apples, like Esopus Spitzenburg; that’s a real antique that Thomas Jefferson loved. We prefer really flavorful apples. … They hit you in the face.”

North Star also boasts two acres of mixed vegetables. With the addition of a hoop house, they hope to keep production going year-round. “A couple years ago I bought some kale at the grocery store and it tasted like nothing,” says Lisa. “So, we’re kind of doing this for selfish reasons — yes, to supply the markets — but also because we want good stuff to eat.”

Everything North Star grows goes directly to customers, either through their CSA or local farmers markets. Their loyalists serve as eager test subjects for the Kerschners’ experimental bent. “There’s this one white peach variety called China Pearl,” says Lisa. “And it’s small, it’s fairly lean and unappealing looking — and it’s amazing. I asked the CSA members, and they were just blown away. So we’re planting more of them.” —Lee Stabert

photos by albert yee

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two gander farm & apiaries locati on specia lty

Oley, Pa.

contac t

honey, greens

treyf lemm ing@y ahoo .com, 610-81 2-258 2 pasa membe r since

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X2004x

wo Gander Farm & Apiaries’ honey

Flemming studied wildlife biology and got into farming to have a deeper connection to the land. “I wanted to do someis labeled simply with the season of its thing where we were being stewards,” he says. His life as an origin — spring, summer, fall. As such, apiarist began by chance — a friend needed help with his it comes in an evolving spectrum of rich, hives. “I kind of fell in love with the beekeeping part of it. golden colors. But the flavor of the honey … It’s an interesting way to think about the whole environalso varies: month by month, hive by hive, ment, beyond what’s happening on the farm. The bees are covering a lot of territory.” and depending on what nectar the bees have Last year, Two Gander brought 15 hives into Philadelphia been nipping. for a summer vacation of sorts. They were placed all around Run by Trey Flemming (pictured) and Rick Rigutto, the city: on rooftops and in backyards. “We wanted to proTwo Gander has hives in seven different locations, mostmote the local honey from Philadelphia,” says Flemming. ly in Berks County, but also in Chester and Montgomery “It’s good for allergies. But also, cities are a wealth of nectar counties. The focus is on organic farms, forming a symbiotic sources; they’re underutilized. So, you get a honey flow that’s relationship with farmmuch stronger. The bees ers looking for a polliare healthier. They don’t Within a few weeks, Summer in nation boost. They also get the kind of contamigrow their own organic nation you get in the the City hosts were putting lawn produce, sold at farmers country, with certain chairs out, having their coffee markets and through a kinds of agriculture — and watching the bees.

CSA. like pesticide exposure Rigutto and Flemfrom neighbors.”

—Trey flemming Any apprehension ming met on this same hive hosts may have farm about eight years ago, working for what was then a 350-member CSA operfelt about their new neighbors quickly dissipated. “Within ated under the name Covered Bridge Produce. They went four or five weeks, they were putting lawn chairs out,” retheir separate ways for a few years, but when the owner went counts Flemming, “having their coffee and watching the out of business, they decided to lease the land. bees.” —Lee Stabert

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yellow springs farm locati on

Chester Springs, Pa.

contac t

yellowsp ringsfar m.com

“I

specia lty

goat cheese

pasa membe r since

figures Yellow Springs Farm’s Catherine Renzi: Once that first pair of Nubian goats arrived, she and her husband, Al, just couldn’t stop. t’s the potato chip problem,”

These days, the Renzi homestead in Chester Springs is home to 27 very friendly goats. The herd provides milk for a line of artisanal cheese inspired by the local terroir. From an infusion of fermented black walnuts (Nutcracker) to a wrapping in local sycamore leaves (Red Leaf ), Yellow Springs’ products are steeped in the microclimate.

The Renzis weren’t always living a bucolic life. Catherine worked in financial services and Al in the pharmaceutical industry. About 10 years ago, they started looking for an old farmhouse to ease their Conshohocken commute. This property was once a 200-acre dairy farm boasting a beautiful 1850s farmhouse.

“We had an interest in land conservation,” says Catherine. “We wanted a place where we could donate a conservation easement on the land as our small contribution to land preservation. So, this fit that bill — it wasn’t conserved; in fact, it had two appraised building lots on it.”

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Their first project was a native plants nursery, a business that has continued to flourish. They eventually started tackling design work, as well, planting meadows and rain gardens. Catherine’s undergraduate degree is in architecture and design, so this felt like a homecoming.

She wasn’t the only one reconnecting with an early calling: “My background is in microbiology, but I was working on the business side of the industry,” says Al. “But now I’m back doing microbiology with cheesemaking.”

When one enters the goat paddock, the animals rush to socialize — nibbling and bleating, their iron bells clap in the fading afternoon light. “I was a premature baby born to 20-something parents in Chicago, and I was fed goat milk to survive,” says Catherine. “So, I was raised on the legend of goat milk.”

They were given their two original animals by a neighbor, and started making cheese in the house. They took the fruit of their labors to a few dinner parties, and eventually pondered the possibility of a small cheese business. Unfortunately, the regulatory roadblocks seemed insurmountable.

PASA was instrumental in helping them formulate their plan. Executive Director Brian Snyder came to the farm for a meeting, and helped them

p h otos by dan m u r p h y

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plot a roadmap to success. Catherine (above) It still took three years to and Al (opposite) get off the ground. You can Renzi tend to now buy Yellow Springs’ their herd. sublime cheeses at local farmers markets, or at one of their weekend open houses. They also offer a cheese CSA, goat milk caramel and chocolate goat milk truffles.

From the first delicately aged bite of Red Leaf, Catherine’s favorite variety, it’s clear the effort was worthwhile. The cheese has an enthralling depth of flavor — and the tang only goat’s milk can provide. “The cheeses are a reflection of a place,” explains Catherine.

“They’re of this place, first because of pasture, but also because of the other products that go into them.” —Lee Stabert

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Summit valley farm locat ion

New Holland, Pa.

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ade Esbenshade’s family has owned this farm in New Holland, Pa., for more than 100 years, but it wasn’t until 2003, when he and his wife, Jen, returned from a three-year sojourn in Guatemala, that Summit Valley embraced an organic approach.

Wade studied agronomy in school — and spent a lot of time learning which sprays kill which weeds. “During our time in Guatemala, we did a lot of reading on sustainable living, and that’s when we started learning more about organic agriculture,” he says. “We learned more about all the chemicals in the food system, and what it’s doing to our health. That’s really when we started changing our mind-set.”

After three years abroad, they wanted to be close to family — and start their own. At the time, Wade’s father was growing conventional field crops; the transition to organic took three

location

Latrobe, Pa.

contact

www.jamisonfarm.com

pasa member since

X1996x

specialty

F

lamb

or the past 30 years, high school sweethearts John and Sukey Jamison have been raising some of the country’s most sought-after lamb on their 210-acre farm in Latrobe, Pa. The Jamisons raise their lambs on a natural diet of blue grass and white clover. They use a method known as intensive rotational grazing that nourishes both animals and land, and results in healthy, abundant grass without the use of chemicals and pesticides.

In the mid-1980s, the duo began placing ads in national publications like the New Yorker and Gourmet Magazine about their farm. Soon, they were shipping lamb meat to home chefs all over the country. In the late ’80s they began selling to world-renowned restaurants in New York, Las Vegas, Washington, D.C., and Pennsylvania. One such restaurant was D.C.’s Jean-Louis, owned by Jean-Louis Palladin, the man credited with revolutionizing French cuisine in the U.S., and popularizing the farm-to-table movement on the East Coast.

The Jamisons have found that the key to their success lies in close attention to each detail of their business, from raising the lambs through connecting with local and national 14

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more years. Summit Valley now sells or- Wade and Jen ganic soybeans, corn and hay to dairies Esbenshade with in the area. “It’s been a slow process of their children on the farm. educating our family,” explains Wade.

“My father is a little bit more of a businessman, so he liked the fact that farming organically can be more profitable. He’s mostly come on board.”

This year, they added organic produce — sold at an on-site farmstand — to the operation. “We’d always been really into gardening,” says Jen. “Friends would ask us where we got our organic produce. And we’d say, ‘well, we grow it.’ We do a lot of talking with people about heirloom varieties. We feel like part of our job here is to educate. People gravitate toward what they know from the grocery store, but it just doesn’t taste as good.” —Lee Stabert

Jamison farm restaurants. In 1994, the couple purchased a John Jamison meat processing plant so they could oversee herds their product from beginning to end. his flock.

“We were awash with our local farmers who were farming conventionally with a lot of chemicals, and using a lot of fertilizer,” explains John. “We were both English majors in the ’60s who bought tickets to Woodstock. [laughs] We were interested in learning about farming, [but] the conventional methods at the time — and still to a large degree today —were not the way we wanted to do it.” —Ariela Rose

S u mmit va l l e y p h otos by a l b e r t y e e , jamison fa r m p h oto by matt h e w p. h u nt

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Charlestown farm locati on contac t

Phoenixville, Pa.

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charlest owncoop erativef arm.org

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produce CSA

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es, Charlestown is a working

farm, but it’s also something of a community project — a place for apprenticing, picking your own produce and low-key gatherings.

The heart of the enterprise is a 150-member CSA. While picking up their share on-site, participants can also collect a cheese CSA share from Yellow Springs Farm up the road (see p.

12) or shop for grass-fed beef, lamb and broilers from Broadwater Farm across the way.

Bill and Liz Andersen, who own both Broadwater and Charlestown, are true ambassadors for the area’s local food culture. They helped found the Phoenixville Farmers’ Market (three miles up the road), widely considered one of the best in the region. It runs year-round, offering

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a venue for the tender baby Farm manager greens coming out of Charles- Melissa Ingaglio town’s high tunnels and hoop gathers eggs. house.

“Next year is our 10-year anniversary,” says manager Melissa Ingaglio. She started three years ago as one of the farm’s many apprentices. Though she spent her childhood on a small Christmas tree farm in Schuylkill County, it wasn’t until she attended college in New York City that she developed a passion for local food systems. “I wasn’t interested in it at all,” she says of the farm of her youth. “So, my parents find it amusing that I came back to this. They’re thrilled and excited.” —Lee Stabert

p h otos by dan m u r p h y

How does Lancaster support its local farmers?

w w w. K i m b e r to n W h o l e Fo o d s . co m Hundreds of items on sale ever y month!

Specialty Cheeses Raw Milk Local & Natural Bodycare With great community design

C

ommunity Heritage Partners works with local food, farmers markets, historic architecture — and now we’ve created Lancaster’s first downtown grocery store for Expressly Local Foods.

Local & Organic Produce Gluten Free Foods Organic Beef & Poultry

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Find us in...

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Real Food . Local Roots .

That means more city residents are buying the best of locally-grown every day, and more Lancaster County farmers are selling products to a stable, nearby marketplace.

The best of community life and farming. Brought together by Community Heritage Partners.

Read more about Expressly Local Foods and other Community Heritage Partners projects at chpartners.net

Design & Development for People and Places

717.393.1639 info@chpartners.net L I F E T I M E

MEMBER SINCE

PASA 1999

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Blooming Glen farm locati on

Perkasie, Pa.

contac t

blooming glenfarm .com

T

specia lty

vegetables

pasa membe r since

X2006x

om Murtha and Tricia Borneman tell

a tall tale that they started their farming career by living with the animals.

“Over the first summer, we always joke, we lived in a chicken coop, and we only had an outhouse, and the farmer was kind of a gnarly old dude,” laughs Murtha, “but we loved farming.”

That was 11 years ago, after the wide-eyed couple embarked on an agricultural journey, taking internships on farms in Connecticut, Oregon and New Jersey before landing in Pennsylvania, where Borneman is originally from.

If you can grow it around here in season, our philosophy is kind of like, ‘Well, let’s give it a go.’

—Tom murtha By 2006, the nomads were ready to settle down, and started Blooming Glen Farm on 25 acres in Perkasie, Pa. The farm’s focus is vegetables, but when it comes to what kind, they don’t discriminate. “If you can grow it around here in season, our philosophy is kind of like, ‘Well, let’s give it a go,’” says Murtha.

The farm produces more than 75 different varieties of vegetables, fruits, flowers and herbs that provide unique diversity to their 300-plus-member CSA, and illuminate their Headhouse Square farmers market stand with a rainbow of

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freshly plucked colors. Each variety is Murtha (top) at grown with respect for the local ecosys- the Headhouse Market; Borneman tem, and without chemicals.

“You’re only going to be as healthy as (above) with their daughter, Dakota, the plants that you eat,” says Murtha. in the field.

“We’re trying to create an atmosphere for our plants on the farm that’s as nurturing and sustaining as possible.”

This creed is instilled in the farm’s yearly crop of interns, who fill 10-hour days with field work, greenhouse operations and marketing duties. Four interns a season are picked to live in the property’s restored farmhouse.

“Each year we try to make the experience of the interns here on the farm a little more in-depth,” says Murtha. “It’s difficult. I don’t think you can get a full skill set in a year, but I think the people who come and work here know by the end of the year whether or not farming is something that is going to speak to them.” —Ariela Rose

p h otos by T r i c ia B o r n e man and T u r t l e J u l ian

Do You Local Food?

4 SUYUNDALLA FARMS

simple ways to show the love @

www.pasafarming.org

DONATE $10 (or more!) online MAKE new friends — become a PASA member

5TH GENERATION FAMILY FARM

ENJOY our informational, inspirational programs & events

SEASONAL FRUITS AND VEGETABLES

SHARE PASA with your friends

LAMB, WOOL PRODUCTS, EGGS

We’re way more real than Farmville!

Join us on facebook.com/pasafarming

VEGETABLE AND BEDDING PLANTS 1848 Clearview Rd. Coplay, PA. 18037

610-261-9098 www.suyundallafarms.net

The Pennsylvania Association for Sustainable Agriculture (PASA) is a non-profit 501c3, promoting profitable farms that produce healthy food for all people while respecting the natural environment since 1992.

World’s Most Affordable Eco-friendly Furniture Clean, Natural, Solid Wood ∙ American Made Southern Yellow Pine is the Most Renewable Building Material in North America

Largest Futon Selection in Pennsylvania!

Loft & Bunk Headquarters

All Sizes! Twin, Full, & Queen

Platform Beds - Nightstands Underbed Storage - Chests Bookshelves - Tables - Etc. (866) ROOMDOC (866) 766-6362

1199 E. College Ave, State College, PA

SINCE 1989

www.RoomDoctor.com

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Glasbern Inn Farm & Table

fine dining enchanting stays working farm 1 hour north of philadelphia

glasbern.com 610-285-4723

MAYSIE’S FARM

CONSERVATION CENTER

15 St. Andrew’s Lane, Glenmoore, PA 19343

Working toward a local, sustainable food system COMMUNITY SUPPORTED AGRICULTURE Sign up now for our 15th season

www.maysiesfarm.org

MAYSIE’S FARMFEST

The Conservation Concert Local Food, Local Music June 11th & 12th, 2011

610-458-8129

Proudly supports the work of PASA in promoting good, clean, and fair food in our region

Visit us at www.slowfoodphilly.org to learn about upcoming events and opportunities to get involved in the food movement

2011 CSA

Shares still Available

Chemical free, fresh picked veggies for 15 weeks Kennett Square, PA

Please visit our website Project1:Layout 1

www.sunnygirlfarm.com 3:10 PM Page 1

Delivering Fresh Organic Produce to Your Door

www.panachefood.com

2/22/10

www.urbanbotanical.com

sustainable event decorating

living garden arrangements can be planted after the event, weddings, parties, holidays corporate-private Helen@urbanbotanical.com or 215.438.7533

Betsy Spivak Insurance Services Individual & Small Group Health Insurance Life Insurance, Disability Income Insurance & Long Term Care Specializing in helping Individuals and Families, the Self-Employed & the Locally Owned Small Business betsy@betsyspivakinsurance.com Direct: 215.275.3033 www.BetsySpivakInsurance.com

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manufacturers of

120 Liberty Street Atglen, PA 19310

www.organicfeedmill.com 610-593-2995

QUALITY, NUTRITIONALLY SOUND ORGANIC FEED

specializing in

DAIRY & POULTRY RATIONS

Love ‘n Fresh Flowers

Farmer Friendly in SpringÞeld

:: from seed to centerpiece ::

a petite, sustainably managed, urban flower farm and floral design studio in Philadelphia dedicated to creating textural floral art exclusively with

weddings workshops flower CSA

Local Since 1869

locally grown flowers

www.martindalesnutrition.com

www.lovenfreshflowers.com

FARM FROMAGE

Local Peat Free

Hand Crafted Cheese from the Farm www.FarmFromage.com

Earth Friendly

717-314-1373

OrganicMechanicSoil.com 110 East Biddle Street | West Chester, PA 19380 | 610.692.7404

Red Hill Farm CSA

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12/23/2009 9:08:50 AM

ACCEPTING MEMBERS FOR THE 2011 SEASON! (610) 558-6799 Aston, PA www.redhillfarm.org

VENDORS WANTED for 2011 SEASON! Now seeking meat, dairy, and mushroom providers for our growing Saturday market, held Memorial Day Voted through Halloween. #2 boutique market in Featuring organic and the US! locally grown vegetables, fruit, bread, meats, cheeses, flowers and baked goods.

LANSDOWNEFARMERSMARKET.COM

Email farmers@lansdownefarmersmarket.com for more info.

VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITY

Wholesale • USDA Certified Organic Potted Organic Herbs & Vegetables Vegetable & Herb Transplants

The Mitchell Organic Farm Program at St. Gabriel’s Hall, Audubon PA. Assist with all aspects of our beautiful Organic Garden. Horticulture and Social Therapeutic Atmosphere.

For adjudicated male youth, ages 12–18. For details, contact: Dagmar Holl, 610-666-7970 x217 dholl@chs-adphila.org

Helping you start your planting season, organically!

Plants you’d buy for yourself 295 Park Drive West, Kintnersville, PA 19830 P: 610-847-8152 F: 610-847-5287 www.peacetreefarm.com

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not just for farmers

tne rs by tau ran ts dis h on the ir par thr ee of PAS A’s mem ber res

Arie la ros e

Victory Brewing Company victorybeer.com 420 Acorn Lane, Downingtown, Pa., 610-873-0881 Location

Downingtown

Brewery specializing in craft beer, made with locally grown, whole-flower hops, that complement the brewpub’s seasonal dishes What

PASA Member Since

Permanent Business Member

Vista Farms, Triple Tree Farm, Cordivano Brothers, Highspire Farms, Cedar Meadow Swine, Milky Way Farm/Chester Springs Creamery Partner Farms

Stand-Out Dish

Beer ice cream made with Chester Springs dairy products

“We believe in supporting locally grown hops as a means for farmers to diversify and hold onto their farms, while holding off development.

Making our customers aware of the enormous significance that natural agriculture ingredients play in our daily lives is critical to harnessing their energies for protecting those resources.” — Ron B a r c h et, brewmaster and CEO “We on the restaurant side of the business feel very strongly about using local ingredients as the quality is far superior, and the positive impact we have on the local economy is greater. We reduce our beer prior to fermentation and blend in dairy products from Chester Springs Creamery to make beer ice cream. It has no alcohol, but it does have great malted flavor. Eating great ice cream made from locally made dairy and locally made beer is the best way I can think of to enjoy the fruits of Chester County!” — M att K ru e g e r, restaurant general manager

The Whip Tavern thewhiptavern.com 1383 N. Chatham Road, Coatesville, Pa.,

610-383-0600 Location

Coatesville

What Award-winning pub specializing in traditional English fare and American favorites elevated by local ingredients PASA Member Since

2010

Partner Farms Lancaster Farm Fresh, Buck Run Farms, Buffalo Run Ranch, Doe Run Farm, Green Meadow Farm, Troika Farm Stand-Out Dish Beef Wellington made with Lancaster County grass-fed beef and a blend of mushrooms grown in Kennett Square

“I would have to say that one of my favorite products is grass-fed beef.

We source it from various locations throughout Lancaster County; it just has a flavor that can’t be matched by larger corporations. I actually have a hard time consuming commercially raised beef, because of the flavor difference.” —Wyatt Lash , executive chef

The Point of Destination (POD) Café thepodcafe.com 6460 Greene St., Philadelphia, Pa., 215-849-7771 Location

Philadelphia

Mt. Airy Café in the 150-year-old Upsal Train Station that specializes in homestyle breakfast favorites and refreshing vegetarian dishes What

PASA Member Since

2010

Lancaster Farm Fresh, Grumblethorpe Historic Gardens, Cherry Hill Orchards Partner Farms

Stand-Out Dish Veggie Reuben prepared with organic mushrooms, carrots and crisp spinach harvested from Lancaster Farms, topped with roasted red peppers, sauerkraut and a homemade remoulade sauce

“As hard as it may be to choose a favorite locally supplied product, we all agree that we enjoy Pink Lady apples, which we use to bake our homemade apple turnovers, the most. It is important for us to provide these local products, because we believe that your food source should never be a mystery.” —Jennif er Joh nson, greening consultant 22

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Master of arts in Food studies Chatham University’s Master of Arts in Food Studies is one of the few graduate food studies programs in the U.S. and the only one to offer both sustainable agriculture and culinary arts and cuisine within a liberal arts environment. As part of Chatham’s new School of Sustainability and the Environment, the program emphasizes a holistic, interdisciplinary approach to food systems. You’ll study how food, from farm to table to compost, affects us and our global environment. The curriculum connects real world problems with ethics, theory, history, communication, research skills, and experiential knowledge as well as offering concentrations in food politics, history and culture, and food markets and marketing.

Big thinking for a big world Woodland Road Pittsburgh, PA 15232 800-837-1290 admission@chatham.edu

chatham.edu/mafs

Think about food from field to table

Recipe for a Sweet and Savory Philly Homegrown™ Weekend • Start with a visit to the Reading Terminal Market and the Italian Market, two of Philly’s most famous markets, for your ingredients

• Sprinkle in stops at restaurants wowing diners’ taste buds with farmfresh cuisine sourced from Amish Country to the Atlantic Ocean

• Blend in delicacies from one of Philly’s 45+ producer-only farmers markets

• Season to taste while satisfying your sweet tooth with refreshing gelato, gourmet chocolates or a locally produced canelé

• Shake things up at a few of our many wineries and breweries

ob ot Ph

Plan your Philly Homegrown™ visit from scratch at visitphilly.com/food.

And be sure to friend us at facebook.com/phillyhomegrown.

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visitphilly.com/food

Are you dreaming of farming?

Are you A looking for land? Or, do you B have land you’re tired of mowing?

Would you rather see someone growing wholesome food on your unused land?

Create opportunities for yourself through “FarmFutures,” an emerging PASA program linking landowners to beginning or expanding farmers.

FarmFutures brings together motivated farmers, landowners, land trusts, and land managers to create new sustainable farm businesses on leased land across southeastern Pennsylvania.

The FarmFutures program “blends eBay with eHarmony” to create a community of landowners and farmers dedicated to restoring the highest use to land—the creation of healthy food for healthy neighborhoods. Growing is better than mowing!

Enroll in FarmFutures as a landowner or farmer by completing a simple, free online application with no obligation. Visit www.pasafarming.org and click on the FarmFutures button.

Get Cooking Chesapeake!

Food Alliance partners with the Pennsylvania Association for Sustainable Agriculture (PASA) to deliver its trusted, third-party certification to farms, food companies, and consumers in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed. Food Alliance Certification ensures safe and fair working conditions, humane treatment of animals, and careful stewardship of ecosystems.

To decide if Food Alliance Certification is right for your operation, contact PASA: (814) 349-9856 • certification@pasafarming.org Meet the New Food Alliance Certified Operations in the Mid-Atlantic Region • Red Jacket Orchards, Geneva NY • One Straw Farm, White Hall MD • Three Springs Fruit Farm, Aspers PA • Ayrshire Farm, Upperville VA • Katchkie Farm, Kinderhook NY

Pennsylvania Association for Sustainable Agriculture www.pasafarming.org

Buy Fresh Buy Local www.BuyLocalPA.org