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Lasting legacy: Hess Farm near Boalsburg has been providing for region for seven generations

Jeff and Cindy Harding are the owners of Hess Farm near Boalsburg, which dates back to the 1840s. Mirror photo by Walt Frank

BOALSBURG — Preserving history and creating a sustainable “gate to plate” beef operation is at the heart of the Harding family, where a cow/calf operation takes place on the same land Cindy Harding’s great-great-grandfather Meichael Hess set up his farming operation in the 1800s.

Hess Farm is owned by Cindy and her husband, Jeff, who purchased the property from her grandmother’s estate in 1996 because “we didn’t want to give it a new name, we wanted to preserve the Hess legacy,” Jeff Harding said.

The 115-acre farm, along Route 45 just west of Boalsburg, is where the Harding’s five children became the seventh generation of the family to grow up on the land.

Cindy’s mother, Elizabeth Barto, was a Hess, the Hardings explained, adding that the oldest part of their house dates to 1837.

The history of the farm was recognized in the 1980s, when it was named a Pennsylvania Century Farm, after Cindy Harding researched and applied for the designation.

The application and recognition was a Christmas gift for her grandmother, Mary Katharine (Thompson) Hess, she said.

“It was an honor for her; I was very happy for her to receive that while she was still living,” Cindy said. “She married my grandfather, moved here to the farm and then lived here for more than 70 years.”

Today, the Hardings raise a herd of 25 Angus cattle and finish steers in order to sell beef wholesale. They sell quantities of beef — quarters, halves and whole steers — but not individual cuts.

“Selling beef is what we do here,” Cindy said. “We supply beef to about 85 families.”

While the COVID-19 pandemic stymied some businesses, it turned out to be beneficial for the beef business at Hess Farm.

The pandemic “caused people to look at the relationship with local providers,” Jeff said. “They were thinking more about where their food comes from.”

“When food is not available at grocery stores or retailers, because of supply chain issues or for other reasons, having access to food that is produced locally is vital,” Cindy said.

The duo said that buying beef wholesale once a year, though, is different from buying beef weekly at the supermarket.

“It requires a little different mindset,” Cindy said. The pandemic, something no one had no control over, “forced people to change the way they looked at buying a staple like beef.”

One caveat for local buyers: “If you are in the Centre region, we will deliver to you,” Jeff said.

In addition to the local customer base, the farm has customers from Philadelphia, New York and Pittsburgh, too, they said.

As a small-scale farmer, Jeff — who grew up on a dairy farm in the Brookville area — holds an off-the-farm full-time job as a dairy consultant for Perdue Agribusiness.

“I manage a sales territory for the eastern third of the United States. I travel some, so Cindy is in charge of the day-to-day when I’m gone. She also takes care of the retailing and marketing aspects of our beef business,” he said.

Recent visitors to the farm include Gov. Tom Wolf and state Secretary of Agriculture Russell Redding, who was a classmate of Jeff’s when the two attended Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences.

“Agriculture — feeding the world — is bigger than politics or party. Governor Wolf’s Pennsylvania Farm Bill is unique in the country and was a bipartisan effort to support agriculture in the Commonwealth,” Jeff said.

During the visit, Redding said standing in the barn at Hess Farm “gives you a sense of humility to understand that we’re here because of generations of others and the decisions they have made and the work they have so tirelessly done.”

The farm is filled with history, he said. “It is amazing to stand here and talk about the future in a barn that has withstood the test of time.”

Carrying on the farming tradition are the Harding’s children — two sons are commodities traders in Bozeman and Kansas City, Kansas; two sons are large (food) animal veterinarians in the central valley of California and Alberta, Canada; and their daughter is a cheesemaker for Lactalis in Boise, Idaho.

“We are very proud they all work in agriculture, that agriculture is responsible for their livelihoods,” Cindy said.

As the couple look toward the future, they plan to continue their work educating consumers and promoting beef and agriculture.

“We feel privileged to live here and are grateful our children had the opportunity to grow up on the farm, and learn the lessons structure can teach. We have an appreciation for, and a responsibility to the animals and land we are currently, temporarily, the stewards of,” Jeff Harding said. “We wanted our children to learn that and understand it, too.”

In addition to taking care of the animals and land, the kids learned the value of hard work, which has been a key to the farm’s success.

“You get up every morning and get the job done and do it day after day,” Cindy said. “You put on your boots and go out and do the job.”

Running the farm does present some challenges as the couple get older, they admit.

“At one time, all five kids were here to help,” Jeff said. “Farming can be very physically demanding. But it’s a passion. We do it because we love being an integral part of the food chain.”

“We hope at least one of our children or grandchildren will live here and continue to grow food and feed people,” Cindy added.

“We want to see the legacy maintained,” Jeff said.

Mirror Staff Writer Walt Frank is at 814-946-7467.

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