H.O.G. Farm

H.O.G. Farm has been growing on the south shore of Long Island since 1996, when head farmer Sean Pilger helped establish what was then called the Hamlet Organic Garden on the edge of Brookhaven Hamlet. Pilger grew up in Brookhaven, studied at Cornell's College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, and spent several years working farms around the country before returning home to manage the operation. That decision was deliberate. As he has put it, farming on Long Island means preserving a tradition in a place that has experienced a significant wave of development.

Today the farm spans 20 acres and grows more than 300 varieties of vegetables, herbs, fruits, and flowers without synthetic fertilizers or pesticides, using natural soil amendments and organic feeds. The farm also maintains a flock of laying hens and raises chickens on pasture for meat. Produce moves through a CSA program, weekend farmstands, and restaurant accounts across Long Island and Brooklyn. The farm has also partnered with Brookhaven Town on a composting initiative, receiving spent coffee grounds from a local roaster weekly to accelerate soil building.

H.O.G. is as much a community hub as a farm. A converted farm shed serves as an event stage, hosting farm dinners, open mics, and gatherings that have made the property a meeting point for the broader community. As Pilger has said of the farm's role: when he started, he knew he'd be a steward of the land, but didn't anticipate becoming a steward of the community too.