Flying Pig Farms brings fresh goods to Trumansburg

The area where State Route 89 runs through Trumansburg is not known for having a plethora of eateries. Visitors and locals flock to Taughannock Falls and the wineries but are left with few food options while traveling the scenic byway. Flying Pig Farms Farmstand wants to change that.

The farm sits across from a vineyard on the edge of T-burg, a piece of land that was originally a 1793 Revolutionary War land grant. Passed down for generations, the old farmland is now thriving thanks to Schuyler and Annie Madison. The couple purchased the land from Schuyler’s family in 2010 to start their own business.

“I love that we’re making our land come alive again,” Annie said. “Schuyler’s grandpa had beef here, but then it was kind of just a quiet place, and now we’re bringing a lot of life back here, which makes me super happy.”

The self-serve farmstead is a small, one-room shed with a cooler of produce, shelves of baked goods and a coffee area, and it’s open 365 days a year. The Madisons stock it with eggs from their chickens and homegrown veggies, as well as produce from other local growers. It’s also full of Amish-made treats from Romulus such as apple crisp, fresh bread and whoopie pies. On weekends, Annie adds her own apple cider donuts to the offerings.

Outside is a covered area with hanging flower baskets for sale and a table and chairs to enjoy a coffee. The shed has hot coffee and cold brew available. Behind the stand is a barn dating back to the original European settlers and next door is the Madisons’ 1800s farmhouse, complete with chickens running in the yard.

The business is actually more like three businesses; Schuyler runs the farm while Annie runs a large-animal veterinarian practice, and they share the responsibilities of their horse boarding venture. The couple agreed that they balance out each other’s strengths and weaknesses.

“He’s really steady, and I am more of an Energizer Bunny,” Annie said. “I come up with so many ideas and push them, and he’s practical. He sits and waits and thinks and plans and then does it. I was all about doing the farmstand, so we started with the eggs because he knows chickens, and then we bought this shed and grew a little bit of produce.”

The couple met while Annie, a Long Island native, was attending Cornell University’s College of Veterinary Medicine and Schuyler was working on a chicken farm. They married in 2008, the same year she graduated, and Annie started working at Starland Vet Practice in 2009.

Annie eventually purchased the practice and now runs it from their property on Route 89. She performs routine care for animals such as horses, sheep, cows and goats, and responds to emergency calls all over the area. Annie said she loves what she does and believes she was meant to do it.

“I was born in Queens. I would have laid down in traffic to meet a cow,” Annie said of her childhood self. “We get a lot of city people coming up, and it’s really cool to see them get so excited about seeing animals. We get to talk to them about it, and I can explain the dairy industry.”

The farm is home to 350 free-range chickens, three horses, two cows, two dogs, two cats and one pig, plus the horses who are boarded. Their most well-known animal is Heidi, a fistulated cow. Heidi has a surgically installed port in her side so that Annie can remove healthy rumen fluid from her and administer it to sick cows, sheep, goats or alpacas. She helps the practice treat sick animals.

The farm’s namesake is Daisy the pot-bellied pig. When Daisy was a piglet, she jumped over a drainage pipe, and the couple said it looked like she was flying. The saying resonated with them because sometimes it felt like others doubted their plans.

“We really had nothing when we started this farm and this is a big place,” Annie said. “People were concerned whether we were going to be able to manage it. And it almost felt like they were saying ‘Yeah, you’ll do that when pigs fly.’ So, we decided this is going to be Flying Pig Farms.”

The couple, now raising three children under the age of 4, has been working hard to prove the naysayers wrong. Since opening their makeshift egg stand in 2014, the farmstand has grown to be a continuously busy spot for tourists and T-burgers looking for dinner ingredients or a quick bite. Schuyler said they have plans to expand someday in the future.

“We’d like to eventually grow more of our own produce,” Schuyler. “And eventually, I’d like to put up a building across the road for the farmstand with a cafe sandwich area as well. I’d just like to be able to offer more on this road because there’s really not that much besides wineries.”

Schuyler grew up on his grandfather’s beef farm and later worked at Bergen Dairy Farm in Odessa, a chicken farm in Covert and did deliveries for a seed farm in T-burg. He said he loves everything about farming and that it was always his dream to have his own farm.

“I love being outside and the animals,” Schuyler said. “I don’t have to go to a 9-to-5 job every day. My day is longer, but I don’t have to sit in an office or be inside. I like being able to do my own thing.”

Both Annie and Schuyler believe it’s important to know where your food comes from and to support local growers and producers. The farmstead is open Monday through Saturday from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Sundays from 7 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. and takes cash, check or Venmo. Follow them on Facebook and Instagram to find out more information.