Photo Courtesy of Maryland Department of Agriculture
ANNAPOLIS, MD — The Maryland Department of Agriculture’s Maryland’s Best program has kicked off the 2024 Maryland’s Best Ice Cream Trail with new additions to the trail, new prizes for participants and of course ice cream! Now in its twelfth year, the Ice Cream Trail is designed to promote the state’s dairy industry and has become increasingly popular, drawing participants from across the state and the region. Maryland Department of Agriculture Secretary Kevin Atticks and team members from the Maryland’s Best program celebrated this year’s trail with an event at Prigel Family Creamery in Baltimore County.
“We are excited to bring about the ice cream trail again this year,” said Maryland Department of Agriculture Secretary Kevin Atticks. “On-farm creameries allow dairy farms to be more profitable – and it’s delicious! All Marylanders should take the time to visit one of the twelve stops.”
The 2024 Ice Cream Trail features twelve on-farm creameries across Maryland that produce and sell their ice cream directly to consumers. The trail stretches more than 145 miles from Washington County to Kent County and encourages the public to learn more about dairy farming and the important contributions of Maryland’s nearly 300 dairy farms. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture 2023 Census of Agriculture, dairy farms produced 101,910,631.39 gallons of milk in 2022!
This year, Maryland’s Best Ice Cream ‘Trailblazers’ are asked to snap a photo or selfie at each of the 12 participating creameries and submit them via email to icecream.trail1@maryland.gov once they have completed the trail. All participants are also encouraged to share their progress on social media by tagging Maryland’s Best (@mdsbest, @mdsbestag) and the location at which they are visiting. Each week a photo that was posted online and tagged will be selected to win a limited edition ice cream cone squishy!
Additionally, the Maryland Department of Agriculture partnered with the Department of Natural Resources and located nearby trails at each of the creamery locations. Consumers are encouraged to get out and hike before or after their ice cream treat! Consumers who post an additional picture of their hike and tag @MarylandDNR, will receive a second entry each week to win the ice cream squishy. Details on the hikes can be found at the Maryland’s Best website.
“One of the best ways to enjoy ice cream is to earn it by completing a hike through one of Maryland’s state parks or forests,” said Department of Natural Resources Secretary Josh Kurtz. “That’s why we’ve identified a dozen hiking trails near these great-tasting creameries so residents and visitors can experience Maryland’s beautiful natural places before enjoying farm-fresh ice cream. So get out there and explore the state while also trying each one of these Maryland creameries.”
The 2024 Ice Cream Trail on-farm creameries include: Prigel Family Creamery (Baltimore County), Deliteful Dairy (Washington County), Happy Cow Creamery (Frederick County), Moo Cow Creamery (Frederick County), South Mountain Creamery (Frederick County), Rocky Point Creamery (Frederick County), Broom’s Bloom Dairy (Harford County), Lockbriar Farms (Kent County), Keyes Creamery (Harford County), Woodbourne Creamery at Rock Hill Orchard (Montgomery County), Misty Meadow Farm Creamery (Washington County), and Chesapeake Bay Farms (Worcester County).
All completed email submissions for all 12 locations will receive a “2024 Maryland’s Best Ice Cream Trailblazer” certificate, and one lucky winner will receive a $50 gift certificate to the on-farm creamery of their choice, a copy of the children’s book “Tales of the Dairy Godmother: Chuck’s Ice Cream Wish,” and the 2024 Maryland’s Best Ice Cream Champion Trailblazer trophy. Anyone who also completes all 11 hikes coordinated with the creameries will also be entered to win an annual parks pass. More information is available at Maryland’s Best.
The Maryland’s Best Ice Cream Trail’s 2024 season will run through September 5.
To learn more about the critical role dairy farming has in Maryland and the Northeast, please visit americandairy.com.
