Ferris Acres Creamery: From Cow to Cone

On any given evening, cars line the street, a herd of cows gently moo, and families stand in line to enjoy a 150+ year old farms’ ice cream confections at Ferris Acres Creamery in Newtown.  If the Creamery were a character in a movie, it would be straight out of central casting. I can almost hear the talent scout now.

“Yeah, we're looking for a quaint dairy farm nestled in a bucolic town on a quiet country road. A friendly herd of cows would be great, yeah.... and let’s toss in some green rolling hills and make sure there are plenty of smiling families standing by.”

Ferris Acres Creamery has been attracting such smiling families and ice cream-avores who are attracted to the farm's location and the playful variety of over 30 flavors, many of them locally inspired including Cow Trax (peanut butter ice cream with caramel swirls and mini chocolate chips) Route 302 Moo (chocolate ice cream with swirls of fudge and chocolate chips), the M.J Rell (mint chocolate chip with green sprinkles) Stony Path (their version of rocky road) and my personal favorite Elvis’ Dream (vanilla ice cream with chunks of bananas, peanut butter swirls and chocolate chips).

Steeped in history, the land was first purchased in 1864 by William David Baldwin Ferris but it wasn’t until mid-century with the purchase of Holstein cows that the families transformed the operation into a dairy farm. Ferris Acres began selling ice cream in 2004 in an effort to turn a profit in an ailing dairy industry and saved the ailing 80-acre dairy farm which today stakes its claim as the last commercial dairy herd in Fairfield County.

The occasional moo, endless and playful ice cream flavors mixed with the inimitable scent of the bovines and long lines, force us to all slow down a little and enjoy the blockbuster we all love, summer, and its leading character in northern Fairfield County, Ferris Acres Creamery.

Ferris Acres Creamery is located on 144 Sugar Street (yes, seriously) which is also Rt. 302 in Newtown, CT. Open seven days a week from 12 noon to 9 pm.