I first met Kelly and Adam Perrin of Quarry Brook Farms at a farmer’s “meet & greet” at Piggy Pat’s some time ago—maybe 2010 or 2011. We have vended at a number of farmer’s markets together over the years, and collaborated on home deliveries and a “farmer’s park-it” in the midst of the pandemic. I’ve watched their young son, Silas, grow into an inquisitive and intelligent young man. And I have thoroughly enjoyed their organic, grass-fed beef on the grill or in a hearty, winter stew.
Watching a young family develop their vision of a farm business over time is a delight. Yes, it is fraught with hard work, growing pains, and learning curves, but Kelly and Adam have managed to do something extraordinary: Not only are they are building soil health and raising pastured animals that are thriving, they’ve also managed to establish an enthusiastic and dedicated customer base by bringing their customers along for the journey. With thoughtfully written newsletters and hundreds of “teachable moments” shared on social media, the Perrins have personalized their unique—yet somehow universal—farm experience. In fact, it is well worth your time to subscribe to their newsletter!
Kelly very kindly answered my many questions, despite it being a very busy spring:
“Adam describes our farm as a “large pile of rocks”. Ha! It’s actually three small farms combined over the years, all tied together by a windy, little road.
“Ours is a sidehill and hill-top farm—lots of rocks, clay, poor soils, and small streams—all of which is a challenge. That’s why we’re mostly a grazing/livestock farm, putting life back into the soil and meeting the land where it’s at. We don’t have a big, central barn so we focus on raising animals on pasture. The hills, valleys, and varying topography of the farm allow us to get our animals out of the wind and the worst weather. It is a tricky piece of land to farm.
“We are currently focusing on organic grass-fed beef and lamb. We have tried all sorts of things over the years—produce, pork, chicken, turkey, eggs, flowers. At this point, the beef herd (Devon, with some Simmental) and sheep flock are both large enough that they take up almost all of our available time. We have also found that it is difficult to have a diversity of farm enterprises when it’s just the two of us. Like every young farmer ever, we probably started out trying to do too much with too little. We learned about business implications and personal burnout the hard way.
“We both grew up on farms. Adam’s family had a hobby farm and my family had a small horse boarding farm with an assortment of gardens. We both had daily farm chores and spent a lot of time with animals from a very young age. We both chose to spend our free time doing farm stuff. We must have been born wanting to do this.
“Adam went to school for Natural Resource Management at Cornell. I have a degree in Outdoor Education from SUNY Cortland. Our educations certainly tie into the farm and help in a lot of ways but neither of us went to school specifically for ag. We’ve mostly learned by doing every possible thing wrong and then asking ourselves how to fix it and trying again. I think we could farm for 180 years and never really feel like we know enough.
“We both like to share all aspects of our farm life with others. Farming can be isolating, so taking the time to share observations or thoughts with others is a way to connect. I also hope it makes farm life feel more accessible to others. We also know farming is a career than can be hard on one’s mental health. Sharing our ups and downs helps us—and we hope it helps others.
“I get the most satisfaction out of taking care of things, watching them improve when you allow a system to function as it should. I love being with the animals. I enjoy challenging the idea that there’s any ONE right way to feed people on a very large planet. I especially love to hear that customers love our food.
“As we look to the future, we will have to make changes that respect the fact that we will age and won’t be able to work as hard as we do forever. We really like the idea of passing along the things we’ve learned and would like to offer things like farm camp for kids and maybe how-to workshops.
“Silas is just a great kid. We got sent a good one. He’ll help with whatever is asked of him and do whatever we need well and cheerfully. He’s a biologist at heart—always noticing the natural world, asking a ton of questions, and following where they lead. He’s very observant and cares about the animals. It’s too early to say if he’ll “take over” the farm someday. I think that’s a lot of pressure to put on a kid and it can’t be fun to feel like life is choosing you instead of the other way around. I can see him continuing to help in whatever way we need until he is old enough to go explore life on his terms for awhile. If he comes back to the farm, it will be his choice.”
Kelly and Quarry Brook Farms’ products can be found at the Hamilton Farmers Market on Saturdays, the Clinton Farmers Market on Thursdays, and online at Local Foods Mohawk Valley (localfoodsmohawkvalley.eatfromfarms.com) and quarrybrookfarms.com. They also have a dedicated freezer at Parry’s General Store in Hamilton.