The Howell Living History Farm in Hopewell Township is providing fresh food to local food pantries and other community programs.
Wheat flour, cornmeal, oatmeal, fresh eggs and more are being supplied to local groups to help feed people during the COVID-19 pandemic.
A half-acre of potatoes was just planted for later distribution through food banks in Mercer County, and the farm is making weekly donations of other items like eggs and grains, that come with recipe cards for making bread, pancakes, and muffins. Oatmeal donations include instructions for cooking oatmeal, as well as for making oat milk.
To date, the farm, which is owned by the county and run by the Mercer County Park Commission, has provided food pantries with 150 pounds of its wheat flour, 200 pounds of cornmeal, 275 pounds of oatmeal and 150 dozen eggs.
The farm also is providing skeins of yarn to volunteer knitters who are making hats, mittens, socks and scarves for donation to those in need of woolen clothing items. The yarn is spun from wool sheared from Howell Farm’s 30 sheep. Each fleece produces about six, 200-yard-long skeins of wool — enough to make six scarves, a dozen pairs of mittens or a dozen hats.
Members of the farm’s volunteer sewing group are also making masks from cotton cloth.
The farm is currently closed to the public, but workers continue to care for the farm’s crops and animals.