The Ice Cream Trail Celebrates Pennsylvania Dairy, Tourism, and PA Preferred® Businesses
The Center for Dairy Excellence, PA Preferred®, and the Pennsylvania Tourism Office are once again seeking creameries to participate in the 2026 Pennsylvania “Scooped” Ice Cream Trail program. Pennsylvania dairy farms that have a value-added ice cream component to their business and meet the qualifications of the PA Preferred® program are encouraged to join the program. The PA Ice Cream Trail was designed to increase consumer awareness of locally produced dairy products and drive state-wide traffic to PA Preferred® dairies and creameries.
“The PA Ice Cream Trail is a great opportunity to bring ice cream lovers to your doorstep,” Pennsylvania Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding said. “Last season, promotions of the trail brought more than 12,500 visitors to creameries across Pennsylvania. These are customers eager not just for great ice cream, but for a connection to the families, farms, and businesses who produce it. We hope you take the opportunity in 2026 to put the PA Preferred® brand and PA Culinary Trails to work for your business.”
The 2026 program is scheduled to kick off in June and will conclude in September. The program includes a digital passport featuring creameries across the state and a prize for those who visit a certain number of creameries.
“Participating in this program helps promote the name of your business and allows for new customers to try your products,” shared Jean Manning of Manning Farm Dairy in Northeastern Pennsylvania, a dairy farmer and PA Preferred® member. “When a new customer comes to our store, they are met with the realization of where their ice cream comes from. 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.”
Participating creameries are required to have a connection to Pennsylvania dairy and must be a PA Preferred® member/licensee. If selected for the 2026 program, creameries will receive a toolkit with resources to help with promoting the initiative at their storefront and on social media platforms.
“The Ice Cream Trail was a fun way to highlight the strength of PA agriculture and vast farm land. It was valuable to our business as it further exposed our brand to neighboring communities and out-of-state visitors. We were able to connect with and hear stories from states as far as Vermont,” shared Manny Rodriguez, owner of Batch Microcreamery and PA Preferred® member.
To participate in the 2026 Ice Cream Trail or learn more about the program, contact Emily Barge by April 13. Email ebarge@centerfordairyexcellence.org or call 717-788-0300. For more information about the trail, visit www.visitpa.com/trip/scooped-ice-cream-trail.