Buying from the local farmers

These are central Pennsylvania producers of organic vegetables and pastured animals who either sell from their farms, or from local markets. Contact them for directions.

If you go and buy, please post a comment or email me at paddydear@epix.net about your experience.

JuJo Acres Farm is located in the rolling hills of western Perry County about 35 miles northwest of Harrisburg. We raise Limousin beef cattle on our 72 acre farm that we purchased in 1972. The Limousin breed of cattle has a 20,000-year history of producing lean, low-fat beef. The breed’s heritage can be traced back to ancient cave drawings near the Limoges region of France, the breed’s land of origin. This heritage breed was imported to America in 1968. Our cattle are grass fed only from our hills and meadows. We are a certified organic farm (by Pennsylvania Certified Organic), farming organically since 1980, ie. no antibiotics, growth hormones or medications. Call or e-mail for price list, our specials and delivery. Beef available in individual cuts, vacuum packed and frozen as well as by the quarter or half.

Lil’ Ponderosa Enterprises in Carlisle manages a closed herd of purebred Black Angus cattle on a 350-acre owned and rented family farm. We raise and finish our cattle on grass using Managed Intensive Grazing. We grow all of our own feed. A 60/40 ratio of grass and legumes which are fed as dry hay and haylege during periods when grass is short or unavailable. Our cattle are never fed grain at any point during their life. We do not use hormones, implants, or any artificial feed. No animal by-products are fed. No chemicals are used on the farm as fertilizer, herbicides or pesticides. Contact in advance, $100 minimum order.

The Painted Hand Farm near Carlisle offers naturally raised chevon (kid and goat meat), guilt-free veal and seasonal pasture-raised heritage turkeys. In 2000, we purchased an old farm that had been seriously neglected and was slated to be subdivided for residential development. Instead of selling our souls to make a buck, we have worked to create a family farm using sustainable agricultural practices in order to raise quality livestock for people who demand that their food be raised and handled in a non-factory farming environment. This means we do not indiscriminately feed antibiotics, use any sort of hormone or implants and do not overcrowd or mutilate our animals. It is our goal to provide quality livestock for a better way of living. Slow Food Member.

Caprine Delight in Gettysburg has pastured turkeys — Bourbon Red Heritage Breed & Broad Breasted Bronze — from 7 to 25 pounds. Roasting chickens. Quarters and Whole Roasters (6-10 pounds). All poultry raised on pasture and fed Nature’s Best Organic Feed. $4.00 / pound. Naturally raised registered alpine dairy goat Raw Milk, mmmmmmmmm delicious. $11/gallon in your container. Containers available for purchase, glass or plastic. Aged raw milk cheeses: Gouda, Parmesan, Dill Havarti, Feta. Goat meat available packaged in favorite cuts $8-12/ pound. Goats are on pasture, and get corn, oats, and barley whole grains (no soy), sunflower and flax seeds during milking. Goats are tested and negative for all major goat diseases. Raw local Honey $12/guart $4/cup and Realsalt $7/quart $2/cup. Open Sunday – Friday, noon-8pm. Closed Saturdays. Farm tours available.

Bearlin Acres Farm in Shippensburg offers pastured and grain-fed prime lamb. Our lamb is cut, wrapped and frozen by a local USDA approved butcher according to your needs. We also raise registered Border Cheviot sheep and Nubian goats as breeding stock.

Swissland Acres in Glen Rock — We are a Grass based farm committed to raising our livestock in a natural setting and feeding them a natural diet without drugs and chemicals. We like to sell directly to the consumer the way our ancestors did. Beef, lamb, chicken, eggs, raw milk.

Brushwood Farm is a small farm in south central Pennsylvania, nestled in the mountains north of Harrisburg. We raise an assortment of heritage chickens and turkeys, herbs, asparagus and shiitake mushrooms. Handmade soaps, which use herbs from our farm, as well as fresh raw milk from local dairies, are available by mail order.

Creekside is a small family farm located in Perry County, just north of Harrisburg, PA. Microgreens, culinary herbs, edible flowers and other specialty greens are grown year round in our greenhouses. We take pride in offering only the freshest produce to discriminating chefs and custom growing is our specialty for those chefs who wish an exclusive item on their menu. Many varieties of micro greens are available. Many specialty vegetables are field grown in season. We are not certified but grow sustainably (our grandchildren live here, too). Our goal is to provide that ‘special touch’ for creative chefs. Slow Food Member.

Dietz Produce in York is a family-run business that has supplied our local community with fresh fruits and vegetables for over 30 years. Our roadside stand is situated along the historic Lincoln Highway, 1.1 mile west of Wrightsville. We also have a stand at York’s Central Market House. While we are not certified organic, we have not used herbicides for at least a dozen years and ceased using conventional pesticides in the 2001 growing season. Even though we are growing things more naturally every year, we at the same time continue to sell other local produce that is conventionally grown. At the Central Market stand, we sell mostly shipped certified organic produce over the winter, and a combination of our homegrown and organic produce during the summer.

Weiser Farm in York Springs — We are a family operated farm that takes great pride in providing exceptional produce to discerning customers who expect an excellent product and want to ‘taste fresh’ and ‘eat healthy’. We are proud to boast a combined over 100 years of agricultural production experience in just the owners alone who strive to provide consumers with a healthy nutrition foundation and diverse ways to prepare the fresh fare that the earth brings us. Come see us from Mid-June when blueberries and sweet cherries are ready, through late November to try our apples and fall vegetables!

Keswick Creamery at Carrock Farm, Newburg … Susan and Bill Dietrich started dairy farming in 1974 and moved to the Cumberland Valley in 1978. In 1997 Melanie returned to the farm from college and in 2001 started making cheese on the farm as a way to join the family farm without adding any more cows or getting any larger. We milk 40 registered Jersey cows and use a portion of the milk for raw milk, aged cheeses. We rotationally graze our cows and do not use any pesticides or chemicals on our pastures. We do not dock our cows tails and do not use hormones or antibiotics. In Spring of 2006 we added a pasteurizer and started making fresh products like yogurt, soft cheeses and ricotta. We sell at select producer-only farmers markets and fine restaurants in Washington, DC and south central Pennsylvania. Slow Food Member.