NEW HOLLAND, Pa. — Pennsylvania has a dairy sweet spot, a secret ingredient. Hint: It goes good with ice cream! What is it? Diversity and the family farm.

Across the Keystone State, family dairy farms are delivering farm-to-cone experiences, like Lapp Valley Farms Creamery outside New Holland, where visitors can enjoy ice cream made from milk produced by the Jersey cows grazing just steps away.

That made the Lancaster County dairy a fitting location to kick off Pennsylvania’s 9th annual Scooped Ice Cream Trail on June 4.

“Score the Sweetest Summer Ever” is the theme for the 2026 trail, launched by Visit PA, the Department of Agriculture and Center for Dairy Excellence. The trail features 59 “PA Preferred” creameries across the Commonwealth, and it runs through Sept. 7, inviting consumers to discover where their ice cream comes from while supporting local dairy farm families.

Standing among dairy cows, calves and families enjoying homemade ice cream, Ag Secretary Russell Redding joined tourism officials, dairy leaders and the Lapp family to celebrate another summer season showcasing Pennsylvania farms and creameries.

“Being part of the Scooped Ice Cream Trail helps us do what we value most at Lapp Valley Creamery — welcome families to the farm and connect them with real dairy farming,” said owner Dave Lapp. “It gives us a way to share our story, our cows and our homemade ice cream all in one stop.”

This connection is a major reason the Ice Cream Trail was created. The trail highlights a uniquely Pennsylvania form of dairy resilience. While many states have grown dairy through larger herds and expanded production, Pennsylvania has built much of its strength through its family farms, local creameries and value-added products.

Trail built around dairy farm families

The Scooped Ice Cream Trail began nine years ago as a partnership among PA Preferred, the Department of Agriculture, Tourism Office and CDE, designed to increase consumer awareness of locally produced dairy products.

Last year’s promotions drove more than 12,500 visits to participating creameries, according to organizers. Visitors who register for the free digital passport can earn prizes by visiting multiple locations throughout the summer, while participating creameries are offering discounts and special promotions.

“When a new customer comes to our store, they are met with the realization of where their ice cream comes from,” said dairy farmer Jean Manning of Manning Farm Dairy. “They see the cows, they see our milk, and they understand that we use all of our milk and cream for our ice cream. It doesn’t get fresher than that.”

Every scoop tells the story

More than a summer desert, Sec. Redding said the trail “reminds us of what makes Pennsylvania agriculture so special: the people behind it. These farm families are up before dawn, working hard every day to bring fresh, local dairy to your cone.”

Adds Emily Barge, CDE communications and marketing manager: “When people visit a farm, try the ice cream, and talk to the family who made it, it allows them to personally connect with Pennsylvania dairy and where their food comes from.”

For Katie Burger, executive director of the Pa. Tourism Office, the Ice Cream Trail is  “economic development you can taste. When a family stops at a creamery in a small Pennsylvania town, they’re not just buying a delicious treat. They’re supporting a local business, a farm family and a community.”

Pennsylvania’s dairy difference

The trail also highlights dairy’s importance to the Keystone State’s agriculture and economy.

Pennsylvania ranks 8th nationally in milk production with approximately 4360 dairy farms and 461,000 dairy cows producing nearly 10 billion pounds of milk annually.

The Commonwealth is home to roughly 20% of all U.S. dairy farms, with an average herd size of 106 cows compared to a national average exceeding 400 cows. Over 98% of Pennsylvania dairy farms remain family owned, compared with 95% nationally.

Pennsylvania is a leading fluid milk state while also ranking 3rd nationally in ice cream production, 2nd in butter production, 4th in sour cream and remains a leading producer of Swiss cheese. The dairy industry supports more than 47,000 jobs and contributes an estimated $11.8 billion annually to the state’s economy.

Those numbers tell only part of the story. While many western dairy states have focused growth around larger herds and greater milk volume, Pennsylvania has built one of the nation’s strongest networks of farmstead creameries, bottling operations, cheesemakers and agritourism destinations. In fact, the Commonwealth has one of the most diverse dairy processing ecosystems in America. The challenge is for this diversity to translate into the returns that sustain the thousands of family farms that make the system possible.

This diversification has become increasingly important. Recent USDA data show Pennsylvania’s milk price advantage over the national average has narrowed from 74 cents per hundredweight to just 31 cents last year, placing greater emphasis on these opportunities that capture additional value.

From ice cream and artisan cheese to bottled milk and yogurt, Pennsylvania’s dairy strength lies not only in production but also in transforming milk into products and experiences that keep more dairy dollars circulating in local communities.

The Scooped Ice Cream Trail has become one of the most visible examples of that strategy. Every scoop sold at a participating creamery represents milk transformed from a commodity into an experience, and Pennsylvania from a state where tourism ranks second only to agriculture in economic significance to a place where family farms are a destination.

Lapp Valley a forerunner

For Lapp Valley, the event highlights a story that for them began more than 50 years on the land they’ve been farming for generations.

The Lapp family’s ice cream business started in 1975 when founder Ben Lapp began making homemade ice cream for visitors attending church services at nearby campgrounds. Demand quickly grew, and what started as a small sideline enterprise expanded alongside the family dairy farm.

Over the years, the operation evolved from a farm store into one of the county and state’s best-known dairy destinations. The family opened a larger retail facility on the Mentzer Road farm outside New Holland in 2002 and expanded again in 2022 with a new Creamery & Café along Route 340 near Gordonville.

The Lapp family milks about 80 Jerseys producing high-butterfat, high-protein A2 milk. Their bottling and ice cream business remains closely tied to the herd, with milk processed on the farm into bottled milk, chocolate milk, ice cream, milkshakes and other dairy products.

From feed and cows to processing and retail sales, the family controls the entire process, creating a true farm-to-table dairy experience. Visitors to Lapp Valley find the experience remains much the same as it has for decades: Jersey cows in the pasture, calves in the barn, homemade ice cream in the cone, and a firsthand look at how dairy farm families across Pennsylvania make all dairy good things possible.

Information, digital passports, participating creameries, prizes and special offers are available at visitpa.com/scooped.