Name: Smith Family Farm
Address: Lucian & Maggie Smith
317 Crooked Road
Bar Harbor, Maine 04609
Phone: 207-288-4848
Facebook: Smith Family Farm
Email: mdidairy@gmail.com
Products and Services:
-organic raw unpasteurized milk
-organic plain and Greek yogurts
-organic vegetables
-Community Supported Agriculture (CSA)
-heritage breed pork
-heritage breed bronze turkeys
-grass-fed organic beef
-herbed yogurt cheese
-chocolate milk
-Ferment
-MDI Buyer Group
-Crown of Maine
-eggs
-farm stand
Farm Stand Hours:
Monday: 3-6 p.m.
Friday: 3-6 p.m.
Saturday: 9 a.m. - noon
Farmers’ Markets:
Bar Harbor - Eden Farmers’ Market
Sunday: 9 a.m. to noon
Blue Hill Farmers’ Market
Saturday: 9 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.
Natural Food Stores:
-A7B Naturals
-John Edwards
-Alternative Market
-Blue Hill Coop
Specialty Shops:
-Sawyers
-Pinetree
-Carrying Place
What Makes Smith Family Farm Unique?
How fortuitous that a young husband and wife, with a great deal of farming experience, were able to purchase the old Fogg Farm on the Crooked Road in Bar Harbor. Mount Desert Island was once home to many farms and several dairies. With the international acclaim that was garnered from the natural beauty of the Acadia area, tourists have flocked to Bar Harbor in droves since the 1800’s. Over time, property taxes skyrocketed and a significant amount of farmland was lost to development. Available affordable farmland soon proved to be a most rare commodity.
Several factors came together to enable Lucian and Maggie Smith to be able to purchase the old Fogg Farm in August of 2003. The former owners of the farm, Aaron and Barbarina Heyerdahl, were environmentalists, who were interested in seeing that the land remain undeveloped. It was a piece of land with a rich history of farming and with a distinct natural beauty that included woods, apple orchards, and fields. With the help of the Maine Coast Heritage Trust, a conservation easement was placed on the sixty-four acre property. One of the stipulations of the easement was that no power lines would be able to be visible on the property.
Lucian and Maggie Smith had worked for several years in the late 1990‘s at the Neverdun Farm in Arundel where they learned all about organic farming and running a market garden. They were later hired as the first farm managers of the Beech Hill Farm, that is owned by the College of the Atlantic. They worked there from 1999 through 2005.
In August of 2003, Lucian and Maggie purchased the Fogg Farm. They built the saltbox farmhouse that is solar-powered and the dairy barn. They also established a herd of Jersey cows and founded the Mount Desert Island Dairy. They are the only dairy on Mt. Desert Island at this time.
Because of a deep commitment to organic practices, Lucian and Maggie Smith have taken the time and effort to have their dairy products certified as organic. They presently offer raw, unpasteurized milk, chocolate milk, and herbed yogurt cheese. Their organic yogurt choices include plain, Greek, maple, and lemon. Their raw milk can be purchased in glass bottles. Recyling takes place at the farm. The glass bottles are returned and recycled. The former farmhouse on the property provided some of the building materials for the solar-powered home that Lucian and Maggie built.
The Smiths three children (eleven-year-old Thorin; nine-year-old Sirri, and six-year-old
Lyra), all help around the farm. There are various animals that require care that include heritage pigs, heritage turkeys, chickens, horses, dogs, and over fifty Jersey cows.
Underlying the Smith’s farm is the belief in producing high-quality food in a sustainable manner. Connecting with the community is a priority for the Smiths. They have donated their milk to the Food Revolution Day that was sponsored by the Mount Desert Island Hospital and were members of the “Real Good Food Group.” They have offered farm tours to the community; participated in local area conservation discussions; taken part in the Fourth of July parade; and held a community supper at their farm. They operate a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) program and greatly value efforts to preserve the rural character of Mt. Desert Island.
A variety of farm products (milk, yogurt, Ferment, vegetables, meats, and greens are available at the Farm Stand at the Smith Family Farm. The Farm Stand is open on Mondays and Fridays from 3 to 6 p.m. and on Saturdays from 9 a.m. to noon.
Several supermarkets, restaurants, and buying groups carry the Mt. Desert Island Dairy’s products. They also can be found at the Eden Hill Farmers’ Market in Bar Harbor on Sunday mornings and at the Blue Hill Farmers’ Market on Saturday mornings. Martha Stewart has been an avid fan of the Smith’s dairy products and has visited the farm on several occasions and written about it in her blog. A video of the story about the Smith Family Farm that appeared on the Martha Stewart Show can be accessed at this link: www.wholeliving.com/6332/smith-family-farm
The Smiths have come a long way in developing their organic farm. They now raise over fifty Jersey cows and they have expanded their farm offerings. In a time when farmland on Mt. Desert Island is a rarity and the former dairies have all shut down it is very gratifying to see how Lucian and Maggie Smith and their children are successfully running a dairy operation. They are raising animals and vegetables with a focus on sustainability and organic practices. Their farm on the Crooked Road is a testament to the value of the efforts of land preservationists and conservation easements.
