B2—Lancaster Fanning, Saturday, January IS, 1953
Blair Co. dairy holds
BY PATTY GROSS MOCK
Staff Correspondent
The day of the small-town dairy
delivering door-to-dooi' is for many
Just a memory of the good old
days. But, in central Penn
sylvania, that convenience is still
alive. Ritchey’s Dairy of southern
Blair County has been filling milk
cases since 1940 and the family
owned operation looks ahead to a
bright future of delivering countiy
fresh ice cream and milk.
Reid Ritchey currently runs the
plant, which was founded by Oliver
Ritchey. Reid says his grand
father, like many fanners, sold
raw milk at his farm. As his
clientele increased, he decided to
go into the mUk processing
business. Oliver Ritchey also
purchased the nearby Kensinger
Dairy near Roaring Spring.
Ritchey’s Dairy began with just
one route and as it grew, more
routes followed.
The dairy has gone through
many changes over the past 42
years. The Ritchey farm originally
was the sole supplier, but soon they
were picking up cans of milk dally
from other farmers. At one time,
20 local farms shipped to Ritchey’s
Dairy. There are now 10 farms
supplying the milk. Reid explained
that those farms now probably are
shipping 10 times as much as the 20
did, years ago.
Dick Hinish has been driving the only tank truck for the
dairy for 30 years. Following his 10-farm pick-ups, the milk is
brought to the plant where it is pumped into the storage
tanks at 65 gallons a minute.
The company packages milk under their own name as well
as for others. Some of the 140,000 gallons of milk brought
into the plant every week is used for ice cream; the rest is
sold in stores or home-delivered.
on to good
The first tank truck in the area
was from Ritchey’s in 1950. “It was
new at that time,” remembered
Reid. “A lot of the fanners were a
little bit reluctant, but they soon
found out it was a much better way
of shipping milk.”
The dairy was once more of a
family business than now. Years
ago the entire family could be
found at the dairy. Reid remem
bers his grandfather owning the
plant and his mother and father
and uncle working there. His other
uncle worked the adjacent Ritchey
farm. Reid’s father Paul, took over
the dairy in 1963 and upon his
retirement in 1973, Reid took the
reins. Reid’s wife Peggy at one
time helped in the office, but now is
kept busy with their 9-year-old son,
Andrew. Their oldest son, Reid 11,
29, no longer helps at the plant, but
27-year-old Randy takes an active
interest and follows in his father’s
footsteps at the dairy.
Reid appears to be the boss that
realizes how hard the employees
labor. He himself came up through
the ranks of the dairy. Every
young person at some time
probably dreams of their own ice
cream factory. For some, the
dream comes true.
During three years in high school
Reid made ice cream. In 1962, he
started the first milk route in the
nearby city of Altoona. The dairy
ol days
already bad 5 or 6 rural routes. He
stuck with the Job for 9 years until
he took over as route foreman and
traveled all of the dairy’s routes.
“It was a real good experience for
me,” he confessed. “Being that I
started out that way, I have a feel
for what my drivers go through."
His early years were In the retail
end, but prior to taking the helm,
Reid moved inside the dairy. “My
last 10 years I’ve learned quite a
bit about the processing of
milk...the milk coming in from the
farms and the machines operating
in the dairy.”
The dairy caters to the door-to
door customers in Blair, Bedford,
and parts of Huntingdon and
Fulton counties, within a 50-mile
radius of the plant. They deliver
practically everything. “We sell a
full line,” Reid proudly stated.
“We must have at least 20 items on
the truck.” The products range
from ice cream, homogenized
milk, 2% milk, skim milk,
chocolate milk, butter milk,
butter, margarine, cream, cottage
cheese, to eggs and orange juice.
If you have a Ritchey’s milk
bottle, bold on to it, for it could
become a collector’s item. “We’ve
been out of the glass containers for
at least 15 years,” said Reid. “We
were one of the first in Blair
County to go all paper. We couldn’t
do both economically.
The dairy processes 140,000
gallons of milk a week. Some of
that milk is used to make the
famous country fresh ice cream.
Ice cream production is about 15
percent of the total business. If the
lines of ice cream eaters in the
summer are any indication, it is a
profitable sideline.
“We don’t make too many
novelties,” smiled Reid. “We
make mainly just half-gallon ice
cream, dipping ice creams and
stenciled party slices.
Some of the ice cream is sold
wholesale, but not on a large scale.
At the dairy, located in the
center of the rich Morrisons Cove
farmland, they have been making
ice cream the same way for years.
“We haven’t changed the formula
for years and years," confided the
owner. Reid’s grandfather’s recipe
apparently isn’t a family secret
either. “We still use fresh eggs-in
our ice cream, along with milk and
cream! sugar and a stabilizer.
Those are the main ingredients.”
According to Reid, ingredients
are the most important thing. The
ice cream producer explained that
they try to have their ice cream
with at least 12 percent butterfat.
If you are looking for the 32
varieties, you won’t find them at
Ritchey’s Dairy. What you will
discover is at least IS flavors of the
tempting delight. The dairy is
capable of making as many as 30
different flavors, however Reid
chooses not to do so with very good
reason. “We like to keep our ice
cream fresh. We feel it moves
better if you have 10 to 15 rather
than 30. Besides it gives the
customers a different variety if
you switch off," he reasoned. The
businessman sees no reason to
take up space with a flavor that
doesn’t sell.
The mouth-watering flavor
which received top billing over the
holidays was “holiday special.” It
not only tasted good, but looked the
part occasion. The ice
cream was highlighted with
pecans, almonds, pineapple and
colorful red and green maraschino
cherries.
Americans eat more ice cream
than anyone else in the world. Hie
customers of the Martinsburg
(Turn to Page B 3)
Richard Claar has been making ice cream at Ritchey’s
Dairy in Martinsburg since the mkt-70s. He’ll add die
strawberry ripple he's making' to the long list of other dairy
favorites Ritchey’s provides.
Randy Hinish started working at Ritchey’s Dairy while a
sophomore in high school and has been there ever since. The
milk packaging machines keep him very busy as he stacks it
with more cartons.
from Ritchey’s Dairy. They have been delivering door-to-door
since the beginning of the dairy in 1940. Owner and manager
of the dairy, Reid Ritchey, says home deliveries are stronger
than ever before.
homestead c
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