A Letter To Our Community
To our community,
When we started Philo Ridge Farm in 2012, our goal was to establish a thriving organic regenerative farm. After a transformative and deeply rewarding decade, we now want to ensure that Philo Ridge Farm will be a multigenerational community asset. To do this, we are organizing as a nonprofit, which will allow Philo Ridge Farm to expand its focus to new research opportunities that will continue to support the future of food and agriculture in Vermont.
We believe a key part of this future is to keep working lands working, which is why Philo Ridge will always remain a working farm. As the team sets the foundation for this next stage, Philo Ridge Farm will temporarily pause our public-facing food service operations, including the Market and our dining facilities. A difficult part of this decision is the fact that we are saying goodbye for now to valued team members.
Though we consider this transition to be a natural next step in the evolution of Philo Ridge, we acknowledge that this is a change for the farm, our staff, and our community. We are forever grateful for all of your support and engagement with Philo Ridge Farm and we are immensely proud of the significant impact our team has made over the past decade.
The design and development of this new nonprofit is a multi-step, multi-year endeavor and we ask for your patience and continued support as we work to build what comes next. Creating and sharing good food has always been a part of who we are and will be part of our future. We are committed to retaining our founding spirit.
We will be open through our annual Winter Holiday Market on December 9th and will pause our public-facing food service operations starting December 10th.
Please take a moment to review our FAQs below and don’t hestitate to reach out with any questions you might have at info@philoridgefarm.com.
Your neighbors,
Peter & Diana
FAQs
What is happening to Philo Ridge Farm?
After a transformative and deeply rewarding decade, Philo Ridge Farm is transitioning to become a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization focused on the future of food and agriculture in Vermont. Our public-facing operations, which include the Market and our dining facilities, are currently paused. Philo Ridge Farm will remain a working farm as we set the foundation for this next phase of the farm’s evolution.
What will the nonprofit organization do?
The primary focus of our new nonprofit is to increase our founding commitment to the future of agriculture in Vermont through research and education. Land stewardship has been a guiding principle of the farm since day one, and a nonprofit designation will enable us to pursue new opportunities in farming, science, research and education to contribute to our community and support local farmers for generations to come. One of our long-term goals is to support more farmers in the transition to regenerative agriculture and we feel this important work is needed now more than ever.
How can I use my Philo Ridge Farm gift card?
If you have a gift card that you were not able to use prior to our operational pause, please reach out to us directly at info@philoridgefarm.com.
What will happen to all of the items I shop for in the Market? Can I buy them elsewhere?
After December 9th we will not be selling products at Philo Ridge Farm, but we will continue to be advocates of all of our amazing Vermont vendors and hope to find new ways to support them in connecting with the community. In the meantime, we encourage guests to connect with their favorite vendors on social media.
What does this mean for the farm and its staff?
Philo Ridge Farm will remain a working farm throughout this transition, and a core team of staff members will stay on board with us to make it possible for the farm to continue growing crops, raising animals and grazing the land. The pause in our hospitality program does mean that we are saying goodbye to valued team members. We are working closely with these team members to provide as much support and as many resources as possible, including severance packages and career coaching.
Will we be able to shop and dine at Philo Ridge Farm in the future?
We are working hard to find the right balance between retaining our founding spirit and remaining a vibrant community gathering space. Creating and sharing good food has always been a part of who we are and we look forward to welcoming the community back to our space in the future.
Should we expect anything from Philo Ridge Farm in 2024?
The design and development of this new nonprofit is a multi-step, multi-year endeavor and we ask for your patience and continued support as we work to build the next evolution of Philo Ridge Farm. We are eager to share more about both the nonprofit organization and how Vermont can engage with Philo Ridge Farm in the future.
While we are deeply committed to the road ahead, we acknowledge that this is a change for the farm and our community. If you have a question that isn’t answered here, please reach out to us at info@philoridgefarm.com.