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MUNCY -- The Green Barn Berry Farm, located at 7299 Armstrong Road in Muncy, has remained busy amidst the pandemic restrictions being tightened and loosened but have taken the opportunity to stop and "take a breath and enjoy everything on a daily basis."
Robyn Schreiber, owner, said that the pandemic, though could have been considered frustrating at times, ended up "opening their eyes" to new opportunities that have come to the farm since the pandemic.
Some of these opportunities include a hand-washing sink for before and after picking produce and berries as well as outdoor performance and field trips for students.
"I was a little nervous at the beginning, I wasn't sure how customers would respond," Schreiber said. "We thought we may have had to pick and do wholesale fruit."
But because of the nature of their outside farm business and the way the produce was spread out, customers could come, bring their own containers and pick their own fruit being completely separated at the appropriate six feet apart distance.
The handwashing sink became a huge benefit to the farm and the customers even enjoyed having the sink according to Schreiber.
"It was a benefit because picking berries can be sticky," she said. "We tried to have as least contact as possible."
The customers, or "friends" as Schreiber calls them, had to wash their hands before and after picking produce and they still keep that around to this day. In addition she said there are other hand-sanitizing stations around the farm as well. They also moved all of their indoor operations outdoors.
In the fall, local violin students who could not have their concert indoors, were also able to play their music through the farm.
"That's something we wouldn't have done pre-COVID and it worked out really well," Schreiber said.
Additionally, local farms brought more health-conscious opportunities to their customers as well.
"People wanted to get outside and they chose to come here," Schreiber said. "They took advantage of cooking, canning and freezing, something that everyone can do at home. It was very busy for us."
"Things have been going quite well…we didn't really see a change thankfully," she continued. "Our friends (the customers) are grateful; I always feel thankful for them. Here, I feel at home; nobody is in a hurry, they come and get an experience. Over the last year and a half to two years we learned to take a breath and enjoy everything on a daily basis. That is what I hope the take-away is."
She added that the farm-goers really liked knowing where the products were coming from.
Green Barn Berry Farm is in its third generation of family ownership and operating. The farm offers you-pick produce and a multitude of acres of strawberries, raspberries and blueberries. The family is preparing to open up for fall with pumpkins, hay rides and animals before their annual winter closing on Nov.1. For more information, please visit their Facebook page.