Our mission is continuing to get noticed.
Whether it’s at the Vogue Knitting Expo or by a community
knitting guild (more on those later), Pure American Naturals’ goal of promoting
sustainability; animal and people nurturing and well-being; expanding and
empowering entrepreneurial and individual talents; and working toward customer
satisfaction draws attention.
One of the latest to focus attention on PAN and our
people is Country Folks magazine, a
weekly farm newspaper that highlights the facets and faces of agricultural
life. The article centered on company principals Glen Cauffman and Judith
Shoemaker, our history and where we’re going.
From the piece:
Like many farms in central Pennsylvania, the Glen Cauffman farm is
tucked into a quiet valley, surrounded by gently rolling hills that cradle the
Susquehanna River in Perry County, Pennsylvania. The farm isn’t unusual in
regard to size and topography, but what’s happening there is unique.
Cauffman is a life-long farmer who spent 24 years as the director of
farm operations for Penn State University. With interest in land stewardship,
conservation planning and appropriate land use, Cauffman wanted an enterprise
that would allow him to develop a market that wouldn’t be dependent on
commodity prices. He explored the idea of raising Angora goats, partly because
he liked their appearance but also to see if they’d thrive in the area.
Cauffman did a thorough economic analysis of Angoras as a livestock enterprise,
including the fact that mohair commands a higher price than wool. But Cauffman
says a major part of his decision to raise goats was to solve the dilemma of a
pasture that included a grove of trees, a stream running through it and
multiflora rose that was five feet tall and as solid as a hedge. “It wasn’t the
kind of place I could mow, spray or control,” he said. “It was going to be a
forever jungle, but goats are good at clearing that kind of brush.”
We’d like to thank Country Folks magazine and writer
Sally Colby for this phenomenal piece of press!
