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Indiana farmer is “Living the Dream”

The Indiana State Fair continues to celebrate the Year of the Farmer.  While many of the farmers recognized are more traditional farmers – it has also been an opportunity to celebrate the state’s specialty crop farmers.

Jason McClure of Peru, Ind. owns and operates McClure’s Orchard and Winery.  He says their family farm has a little bit of everything.  “We raise apples, peaches, pears, cherries, grapes, asparagus, and rhubarb,” he says.  “We have a little petting zoo on site and a café on site and we also do our own hard cider and wine.”

He tells Brownfield their farm is an opportunity to educate consumers about agriculture, especially the next generation of consumers.  “I don’t know how many corn and soybean guys have a bunch of school kids coming in and running through their fields,” he says.  “But the great thing is having a petting zoo on site we talk to the kids about animals, we raise our own honey bees so we talk to the kids about the importance of honey bees to pollination to our trees, and then we also take the kids out and pick some apples with them.”

He says the state fair has also been a great opportunity teach fairgoers about Indiana’s specialty farmers.

But his favorite part of being one of this year’s Featured Farmers?  “Hanging out with people,” he says.  “We’re at the Farm Bureau building a little bit and at the FFA building.  We also had the opportunity to great kids as they came in the family fun farm – which was aweseome.  Today if we weren’t here we’d be out on the farm working so it’s been great enjoying the day with faces we might not have seen otherwise.”

McClure’s hard cider and wine is also featured during the Indiana State Fair at the Indiana Beer & Wine Exhibition.  The state fair runs through August 23.