There are countless reasons to visit Farmstead. Here are just a few!
1. Taste Real Flavors
The fruits and vegetables you buy at Farmstead are the freshest and tastiest available. Fruits are allowed to ripen fully in the field and are brought directly to you—no long-distance shipping, no gassing to simulate the ripening process, no sitting for weeks in storage. This food is as real as it gets—fresh from the farm. Masser’s is dedicated to bringing you the best EVERY WEEK!
2. Support a Family Farm
Family farmers need your support, now that large agribusiness dominates food production in the U.S. Small family farms have a hard time competing in the food marketplace. Buying directly from farmers gives them a better return for their produce and gives them a fighting chance in today’s globalized economy.
3. Protect the Environment
Food in the U.S. travels an average of 1,500 miles to get to your plate. All this shipping uses large amounts of natural resources (especially fossil fuels), contributes to pollution, and creates trash with extra packaging. Conventional agriculture also uses many more resources than sustainable agriculture and pollutes water, land, and air with toxic agricultural by-products. Food at the farmers market is transported shorter distances and is generally grown using methods that minimize the impact on the earth.
4. Nourish Yourself
Much food found in grocery stores is highly processed and grown using pesticides, hormones, antibiotics, and genetic modification. Some of it has been irradiated, waxed, or gassed in transit. These practices may have negative effects on human health. In contrast, most food found at Farmstead is minimally processed, and many of our Vendors go to great lengths to grow the most nutritious produce, meat, poultry and seafood possible by using sustainable techniques, and bringing everything as fresh as possible.
5. Know Where Your Food Comes From
A regular trip to a Farmstead is one of the best ways to connect with where your food comes from. Meeting and talking to the Vendors is a great opportunity to learn more about how and where food is produced.
6. Learn Cooking Tips, Recipes, and Meal Ideas
Few grocery store cashiers or produce stockers will give you tips on how to cook the ingredients you buy, but the Vendors at the Farmstead are often passionate cooks with plenty of free advice about how to cook the foods they are selling. Sandi from Sandi’s Breads has so many great meal ideas!!
7. Connect with Your Community
Farmstead is a community hub—a place to meet up with your friends, bring your children, or just pick up something for dinner. You come just to hang out, get a great cup of coffee, a hot, soft, freshly-made pretzel, and a freshly made sandwich and soup!
8. The Specialty Shops that gives Farmstead its COLOR!!
Extra Special – Offers salt lamps, fantastic lotions and natural soaps, handmade to order jewelry, home decor and so much more. Bonnie will work with you to pick out the perfect gift.
Stacy’s Polish Pottery / Eccelection – Stacy has the largest, most colorful and complete selection of Polish Pottery in Central PA. She also shops in NYC to provide you with the newest, most versatile fashions that can fit any body type.
Sweet Valley Shoppes – Alpaca wool yarn, scarves, clothing and more!! Alpaca fiber is considered a luxury fiber due to its properties of being very fine and lightweight while being exceptionally warm. It is also relatively rare on the world market due in part to the small number of alpacas producing fiber globally. But we have it right here at Farmstead!!
African Paradise– Lots of African art and decor, clothing, musical instruments and jewelry.
Doglicious – Pamper your dog with specialty treats. Tami has bones, baked goods, pillows and throws for the doggies in your life.
Pampered Chef – No more waiting for that order to come in. Velvet has a huge stock of the most popular of the Pampered Chef items.
JR Watkins – America’s original apothecary manufacturer featuring a diverse line of personal care, home care, remedies, herbs, spices & flavorings. All right here at Farmstead.