Thank You Dairy Much Bellevale Farms!
Nestled in the rolling fields of the Long Green Valley just to the northeast of Baltimore, Bellevale Farms is one of our 35 partners under the Local Food Purchase Assistance Cooperative Agreement (LFPA), and has been one of the Maryland Food Bank’s key agriculture allies since 2023.
This innovative partnership means that neighbors in need have consistent access to fresh, cold milk at our community partners statewide, and Bellevale Farms has a consistent, local buyer for their product.
But Bellevale Farms is probably better known by Marylanders for its ability to turn milk, heavy cream, sugar, salt, and other ingredients into tasty ice cream and other sweet treats at the Prigel Family Creamery in Glen Arm.
Bellevale Farms supplies 810 half gallons of 2% milk each week – that’s more than 20,000 gallons per year (the equivalent of an average backyard swimming pool)!
“In Maryland, you have to diversify, or basically die,” stated Matt Prigel, co-owner, and fifth generation farmer, when asked about how his family’s farm has been able to stay in business for the 130 years since his great, great grandfather started the farm.
After revealing some of the farms’ rich history—including the fact that they still sell a variety of cheese called Avondale, which honors the farm’s original name from 1895—Matt shared just how challenging his industry is more than a century later:
“Between 2012-2022 in Baltimore County, where we are, we’ve lost more than 30% of the dairy farms, and with two more in the last year, we’re down to just four dairy farms in the area.”
The Distinction Between a Farmer and Farming
But the Prigel family embraced big change on their “small” farm, opening Prigel Family Creamery in 2008, giving Matt the flexibility to focus on ‘farming,’ which Matt describes as different from being a ‘farmer.’
“It became very clear to me a couple of years ago that you can’t just be a ‘farmer’ anymore – you can’t just wake up, do the work, collect the check and repeat,” he said. “Today, I am a milker, I’m a maintenance guy, delivery guy, processor, business manager – you know, a little bit of everything.”
In Matt’s eyes, successful farming takes a combination of education and experience.
“I think it’s good to learn and continually try to pursue more knowledge in particular fields, but there’s also great benefit to simply hands-on learning – what works on one farm might not work on farm down the street because you have such differences in land, in animals, and people,” Matt shared.
While most Marylanders treat the state’s ever-changing weather as more of a punchline, the peculiarities can be especially challenging when trying to farm.
“In our valley, I’ve seen the rain come up, go completely around me and then keep going so I got a month of drought, while my neighbor got rain!”
“In Maryland, you have to diversify, or basically die.”
A Modern Solution to an Age Old Problem
During COVID, the disruption of the food supply put a focus back on the local farmer, something which Matt felt very strongly.
“I learned the value of being the local farmer, providing for my community,” he said. “I don’t believe we need to be reliant on food coming from out of state—I’m right here, and I want to provide for you—there’s a good mutual relationship right there,” Matt continued.
And post-COVID, that good, mutual relationship between a Maryland farm and Marylanders has blossomed into a strong, expansive partnership under the aforementioned LFPA that feeds even more Marylanders.
“I think the Maryland Food Bank and our farm can agree that it’s our mission to take care or Marylanders, right? My sister and I have been tossing around the line ‘Maryland Farms Feeding Maryland Families,’ and our partnership with the food bank lets us do that,” said Matt.
And while the Prigels rightly feel proud about their ability to feed hungry neighbors, the partnership also allows them to manage some of those ‘farming’ tasks more easily.
“Even though we diversified – no one wants to eat ice cream in the winter, so the consistency is great,” said Matt. “There’s a weekly order that’s going out, and I know I can count on that money regularly coming in, and I can pay whatever bills are coming up,” he continued.
And for the food bank, this partnership is providing a consistent solution – now partners can order fresh milk from our menu.
“Milk is a challenge for food banks to distribute with its short shelf-life, but having the capability to utilize the LFPA grant to purchase fresh milk and distribute it at zero cost has been a big benefit to our farm and community partners, and ultimately our neighbors in need, said Andrew Miller, Sourcing Manager, the Maryland Food Bank.
And between the food supply lessons learned during the pandemic, and the fact that as many as 2 million Marylanders face hunger on any given day, the need for more of these kinds of farms, and partnerships are evident.
“I want more people to get into dairy – not only for the sustainability of our state’s food supply, but for the security of the next generation of famers,” noted Matt. Matt’s concerns extend to all of the United States. “Why do we need to ship milk all across the country? We have dairy farms all over – let those dairy farmers take care of their communities…”
Banking on Innovative Relationships
Bellevale Farms is one of our 46 Maryland-based agriculture partnerships; we’re fortunate that so many people working in the agriculture industry see the value in helping others – often as a way to help themselves.
Over the past few years, we’ve worked hard to make it easier to collaborate with the Maryland Food Bank, changing the systems, processes, and procedures. that our partners use to interact with the Maryland Food Bank.
And that work seems to be paying off:
“All of us small farmers are facing the same struggles, so the speed and consistency is appreciated – no more waiting for days to get checks in the mail, and no lost checks either, it’s very beneficial for me, and the communication from the staff has been great,” Matt shared. 
Partnership with the Maryland Food Bank
Find out how by partnering together, we can have an even greater impact on the lives of our neighbors in need.
About The Author
Ben Gross
For more than 30 years, Ben has been helping organizations raise awareness and inspire action by creating compelling narratives. And since 2018, Ben has been the Maryland Food Bank's Staff Writer, elevating the voices of food-insecure neighbors to further the Maryland Food Bank's mission of feeding people, strengthening communities, and ending hunger for more Marylanders.
