Hundreds flock to Cambridge City farm for tour, dinner

CAMBRIDGE CITY, Ind. (AP) - More than 200 people turned out this week for the Wayne County Area Chamber of Commerce farm tour event at Cambridge City's Golliher Farm.

The event, designed to showcase local agricultural businesses and the communities they serve, allowed participants to get up close to different areas of the family owned operation, including learning about livestock raised by the Gollihers and how each animal is used.

Attendees also learned how each kind of animal is cared for, the type of feed it is given and the kinds of vegetables grown in the farm's garden area.

"We think it's really important to (inform) ... the community of the agriculture businesses there are here in Wayne County," said Amy Holthouse, the chamber's president and chief executive officer. "The sector occupies a majority of the acreage in the county, and it's important to give people a better understanding of its role."

Following the tours, attendees were served a fresh-made dinner that included pork and vegetables grown on the farm itself. The food was prepared by The Kitchen, a restaurant offering lunch, dinner and catering that is one of Golliher Farm's biggest clients.

Holthouse said the original cut-off was for 150 people to attend Tuesday's event, but the list quickly surpassed 200, and there were dozens that had to be put on a waiting list for next year's farm tour, which still is in the planning stages.

"Everyone seems to think that 'a farm's a farm; they're all the same.' We need to celebrate the uniqueness of different types of farms in our county," she said. "It's great to see people getting excited about it."

According to Brian Gollher, one of three brothers who partnered to open the farm three years ago, helping people see what's done on farms like this one can be quite helpful.

"We just wanted to show how we run our farm - taking our product to a farm-to-table operation - and help educate (people about) what that means," Golliher said. "We supply several places and farmers markets in the area, so letting people see how operations work can be beneficial."

The farm, which sits on about 400 acres, normally doesn't have large groups come through for tours, although it does sell directly to customers who are interested in such services, Golliher said.

"We can sell a whole cow or a pound of hamburger," he said.

Brian Golliher and his brother Joe Golliher said they were surprised by the number of people who attended the tour.

"I didn't figure this many people would be interested," Joe Golliher said. "But I guess there's an immense interest in the way we're farming and the way we're raising our animals."

Golliher Farm animals are raised all naturally, using antibiotics only when animals are sick or in pain.

Melissa Vance, educational coordinator for the chamber, said a location for next year's farm tour hasn't been determined yet but noted it will be something different than this year's event.

"We really like to make things interesting and different each time we hold an event," she said. "We don't like the same-old, same-old."

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Source: (Richmond) Palladium-Item, http://pinews.co/2azncUo

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Information from: Palladium-Item, http://www.pal-item.com