Milk to wine, a farming bonanza

Chester County is booming, but not just with people: Mushrooms, milk, wine, hay, apples and arugula are among the thriving agricultural products.

To help residents appreciate their farming roots,  the Chester Delaware County Farm Bureau has produced a brochure — available in hard copy or as a pdf document —  to highlight information about local agriculture, which has been making significant contributions to the economy, social life, and landscape of Chester County since colonial days.

Chester County ranks second in Pennsylvania in farm sales at over $550 million, contributing an estimated $3.25 billion to the local economy, the bureau said. In fact, the production of mushrooms alone generates nearly half of what the U.S. consumes annually. "Many people in our community are not aware of the significance of farming and its role in creating our treasured landscape in Chester County," said Dan Miller, president of the county Farm Bureau. "We hope this brochure will help them understand better the role our farmers have in supplying food and feed and providing a wide range of equine activities." Janet Robinson, the bureau's secretary-treasurer, added that the Chester County also enjoys agricultural diversity. "We are fortunate in having such a wide range of farming activities, including dairy, field crops, vineyards and fruit and vegetable crops produced for wholesale, farm stands, farmers markets and CSAs," she said. "Don't forget our nationally important equine segment."

The brochure, sponsored by Fulton Bank, Simpers Agency-Nationwide Insurance, and Hostetter Grain of Oxford, is available in any reasonable quantity by contacting Duncan Allison 610-388-1135 or visiting http://www.pafbcounties.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=56&Itemid=54 and then clicking on Chester County Farming Facts.