On their PA Preferred® Honey Brook Farm in Schuylkill County, Angela and Josiah Meck raise beef, pork, chicken and turkey, selling the pastured proteins directly to consumers for an authentic farm-to-table dining experience. They also focus on regenerative agriculture, incorporating environmental stewardship into their daily farming practices with future generations in mind.
The Mecks are proud PA Preferred members. The program has provided them with marketing support and opened doors for them through networking opportunities at the annual PA Farm Show. We chatted with the Mecks to learn more about their life as family farmers, and what sets Honey Brook Farm apart:
PA Eats: What do you love about your work?
Angela and Josiah Meck: We love working with the livestock on our farm, especially the pigs. The pigs are Josiah’s favorite part. Angela’s favorite part of having the farm is knowing where our food comes from and feeling confident that the food she’s feeding her family is healthy.
What are your most popular products?
The filet mignon is one of the most popular cuts. The ribeyes, hotdogs, smoked sausage and breakfast sausage are also very popular. People love ground beef, too. Everything tastes great and has minimal ingredients.
What challenges do you face as farmers?
Starting out as first generation farmers is very hard. We worked high-paying, off-farm jobs throughout the country to be able to save enough money to purchase the land. The capital investment in equipment made some of the operations we thought we would do cost-prohibitive. Thanks to neighboring farmers, we were able to still buy hay, then pay others to make our hay, and eventually rent equipment. We have a great network of farmers and neighbors who appreciate what we do and are willing to help us out.
What set Honey Brook Farm Apart?
Our farm is different from many of the farms in our area because we sell direct to consumers. We don’t work under any contract to sell meat. We raise and market our products on our own. We rarely turn down an opportunity to talk with the newspaper or answer questions from the local news station reporters. We want more people to know that their food can be bought locally. We try to make it as convenient as possible to buy local, too. Some of our non-farming neighbors joke that we are the ‘most recognizable farmers in Schuylkill County.’Angela Meck
What excites you about the future of the farm?
We always think about our children when we think of the future of our farm. Our children are the sixth generation to work and play at this farm. Angela’s great-grandmother was the last direct family to run the farm. Then it was Honey Brook Dairy. We now call the farm ‘Honey Brook Farm. Neither of our parents or grandparents were farmers by profession. We brought life back into this farm, and it will be available for our children to farm in the future.
To enjoy Honey Brook Farm’s products, visit the farm at 310 Deiberts Valley Rd., Schuylkill Haven; (484) 553-6854; The Farm Store in Pottsville; Sunny Cupboard at 744 PA-183, Schuylkill Haven; (570) 739-2600; or Dave’s Backyard Farms at 2587 Huntingdon Pike, Huntingdon Valley; (215) 837-8019.
You can also shop Honey Brook Farm’s products online, where you’ll find special sales and pickup or delivery options.
This series was created in collaboration with PA Preferred.
PA Preferred® is Pennsylvania’s statewide branding program that promotes locally grown and processed food and other agricultural products.
- Photos: Honey Brook Farm
