In July, my family and I visited River Ridge Farm for their “Berry Fest – U Pick Day.” It was a hot July day filled with berry picking, hayrides, face painting and yummy food. The children enjoyed filling the pint containers with blueberries and black raspberries. They also loved the hand made snow cones with syrup made from the berries. I was excited for my children to see where some of their food comes from, but we left having a better understanding of all the work and logistics it takes to get food to us in our city grocery store.
River Ridge Farm is in Independence, VA. It is owned by my aunt, Charlotte Hanes, which allowed us to ask lots of questions during our day on the farm. They primarily raise grass-fed beef and added berries to their farm a few years ago. They raise berries in the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains, free of pesticides and using sustainable farming methods.
When we arrived at the farm, we purchased 6 pint containers for $30, $5 per pint. This is about what you would pay for a pint of organically grown berries in a grocery store. At first, this sounded high to me, but as I learned more about the many steps that go into getting berries into our hands, it now sounds like a bargain.
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