Farming by the Numbers

As Chewonki’s fiscal year draws to a close, I take some time to total up the poundage and value of food grown on the farm this year.  Some highlights:

• 16,000 pounds of vegetables (including more than 2100 pounds of onions and 1700 pounds of potatoes harvested in just one two-hour work program by Semester 55 this fall)
• 1500 pounds of beef
• 2490 pounds of pork (thanks to our expanded winter system, which supported six additional pigs raised over the winter to feed at Boys Camp this summer)
• 390 pounds of lamb
• 240 pounds of turkey
• 1460 pounds of chicken
• 14,200 eggs
• 1660 gallons of milk
• 21 cords of firewood

And the list could go on: we also produced valuable hay, compost, and manure.

The most exciting news . . . drum roll, please . . . is that 30% of the food served in the dining hall this year came off our farm.  While there’s always room to grow (more food!), we’re proud to be working toward maximizing this limited farm footprint and feeding this small (but sometimes big) community.  Considering how many meals the kitchen serves each year – upwards of 80,000 meals – 30% is no small potatoes!