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Have you “herd” about Sheldon Creek Dairy’s Day on the Farm?

June 21, 2019   ·   0 Comments

By Wendy Gabrek

The 8th annual Sheldon Creek Dairy “Day on the Farm” took place in Loretto on Saturday, June 15.

Thousands of people flocked to the farm to learn more about where their food comes from, and how it’s produced, while getting up close with farm animals and speaking with local producers.

The event allowed locals to meet the cows and tour the new robotic milking barn, engage in educational activities for kids, learn how food goes from “Farm to Plate”, and was a celebration of local food and education on agriculture for the family to enjoy Father’s Day weekend.

Free activities included face painting, live music and entertainment, local food showcase and the opportunity to meet with farmers while visiting various education trailers such as pig farmers, dairy farmers, and farm safety from the Adjala–Tosorontio Firefighters Association.

“This is a great family event where you can see first-hand the process your food goes through from farm to fridge,” said Marianne den Haan of Sheldon Creek Dairy. 

“Over the years we have broadened the agriculture commodity groups that are represented, we now have chicken farmers, pig farmers and grain farmers represented as well as Farm and Food Care which represents all commodities in agriculture to educate and inform the public on agricultural practices,” said Emily den Hann of the 2019 Day on the Farm event. “We’ve also broadened our farmers’ market to include more and more local vendors every year.”

The concept behind the free family fun day, originated when the den Hann family bought Sheldon Creek Dairy in 2012.

“We wanted people to see where their food comes from and have an understanding of what goes into not only a glass of milk but also the other foods on their plate,” said Emily. “In 2012 we had 1500 people attend and it has increased every year.”

Sheldon Creek Dairy is built on the third generation Haanview farm nestled in the rolling hills of the Sheldon Valley. 

The farm is owned and operated by the den Haan family, who have 75 purebred Holstein cows in their milking herd. 

“We have been breeding exclusively for A2A2 genetics for the past 5 years and have tested our herd for A2. We are the first in Canada to produce 100 per cent A2 milk,” said Marianne. “Our cows graze on pastures from May until November. In the winter months they spend in the barn with a run out in the snow for a short time each day while we clean and bed up the stable.”

Sponsored by local business, Day on the Farm just keeps getting bigger and better.

“Our sponsors are organizations and corporations that we deal with on the farm and at the dairy, they support us with products and services on a daily basis throughout our farming operation. They love to support educational events and see a need for educating the consumer for the future of our industry,” said Emily.

And Day on the Farm will be back again next year.

Sheldon Creek Dairy is located at 4316 RR#2  Adjala–Tosorontio, Loretto, and owned by the den Haan family – crafters of whole milk and yogurt products, including A1 and A2 varieties, made from the milk of their own cows and sold in Canadian made recyclable glass bottles in retail stores across Ontario. 

The farm store is open daily from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and sells whole milk, yogurt, kefir and labneh, along with many other local products.

“We sell our dairy product line that we make on our farm as well as our beef that we raise on our farm. We also carry many local products such as preserves, pies, butter tarts, granola, honey, maple syrup and a wide of Ontario cheese.”

For more information about Sheldon Creek Dairy, visit www.sheldoncreekdairy.ca, email office@sheldoncreekdairy.ca, or call 705 434-0404.

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