Ever go to the grocery store and wonder where those fun glass milk bottles come from? Are you interested in learning about how fresh cream and butter are made? Want to see some sweet cows? Then spend your morning taking a tour of Hildebrand Farms Dairy!
Location
The farm is located at 5210 Rucker Rd., Junction City, Kansas, just about 3 miles West of Route 77.
Plan Your Visit
Touring the farm is a fun family activity for all ages. The tours take you on a walk through the milk barn, free-stall barn, calf barn and dairy processing plant. Each tour will enjoy samples of milk (we loved the strawberry milk and root beer milk!) and a homemade ice cream for every member of your party at the end.
Tours are by appointment ONLY and the farm needs at least one week’s notice to ensure proper staffing. Tours are available Thursdays and Fridays at 10:30 a.m. or 1:30 p.m. as well as Saturdays at 10:30 a.m. Tours are about an hour long and cost $6 per person (children under three are free).
The Farm Store
Your visit to Hildebrand Farms isn’t complete without visiting the Farm Store. Your tummy will thank you! The Farm Store is open Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. and Saturdays, 930 a.m. until 3 p.m. Visit the Farm Store and taste their delicious, rich, and creamy soft-serve ice cream, available in cups or cones. The soft-serve ice cream is all-natural and is made with Hildebrand’s fresh milk and cream, and all-natural cane sugar. You can get vanilla and chocolate ice cream on an every other week rotation, although they will occasionally do some more exotic mixes. The store also sells their signature glass bottled milk, locally raised meat, eggs, butter, cheese, and other goodies.
Although their products are sold at over 125 retail locations across Kansas, there’s something magical about getting these products right at the farm! Make sure to bring your bottles to your local grocery store when you’re finished so they can reuse them. The bottles do require a small deposit (less than $3), and it gets returned when you return the bottle. This exchange can be done at both Dillons locations and Hy-Vee in Manhattan.
Mom Tip: Want to spend some more time checking out Junction City? After a busy morning touring the farm, consider grabbing some yummy barbecue for lunch from Billy Sims and checking out 5th Street (Playground) Park!
