What began as a produce stand in North, South Carolina 10 years ago grew into one of the largest family farms in the state. Last April, McCurley Farms started selling produce at Southern Carolina Palms in Aiken. Three months later, Paul McCurley found a permanent location at 949 Doughtery Road. Now, the farm is growing again.
“Property became available behind our house in North. We leased another 79 acres a few weeks ago which will give us more space for planting watermelons, beans, and peas,” explained McCurley.
Their success has been fueled by the response from the Aiken location which is run by his daughters, Morgan and Bailey.
“Aiken is fond of supporting local. We had a customer come in recently who said she could buy what we sell at a store but if I get it here, I know it’s fresh and locally grown.”
You can find just about anything you would have on your grocery list, of course, fresh produce but also raw milk, eggs, sausage, pork, and beef. With contacts up and down the East Coast, McCurley also offers homemade breads, Key Lime Pies, jams and jellies, and salsa.
Did we mention eggs? They’ve been in short supply at several area grocery store shelves recently, but McCurley has 150 laying hens. They never experienced a shortage of fresh eggs.
The McCurley Farm motto is Faith, Family, Farming. As a former pastor, faith and helping neighbors are important to him and his family.
After Hurricane Helene’s devastation, McCurley started getting calls from across the south and NY, Pennsylvania, and Kansas. Farmers are a tight-knit group.
“I was in the hardest hit areas of Western NC, two days after Helene. In the next few weeks, we gathered supplies from Edgefield County Schools and many of our customers to help. I drove seven 26’ box trucks of supplies to the area and Burton Farms in Lincolnton, NC helped with warehousing and distribution to those in need.”
McCurley also gave a shout-out to Augusta Transportation who fixed his box truck after it broke down at no charge.
“For about a month, we kind of let our Aiken store go. We lost money and momentum and it hurt our business but it was worth it.”
Helene destroyed many crops that contributed to the $135 million agriculture economy in Georgia and South Carolina, especially pecans, cotton, peaches, and apples. But farmers are resilient.
McCurley has a following in the CSRA, including catering businesses like La Vita Bella, Feed Sack restaurants, and Cook’s Roadside Market in Edgefield. They all want what McCurley’s has, fresh everything because “It’s about as legit to farm to table as it gets.”
Despite the blast of winter weather we’ve experienced, one of McCurley Farms’ favorite offerings will be here before you know it, strawberries. They are already preparing for U Pick ‘Em.
As the seasons change, so does what might be freshest and best down on the farm. You can follow them here: McCurley Farms.
Editor’s Note:
Mitzi Oxford is a veteran broadcaster and features writer who also worked at the same television station in Columbus, Georgia as Augusta’s Brad Means! If you have a South Carolina story idea for Mitzi, please email her at mitzioxfordcreative@gmail.com.
