Beloved N.J. apple-picking farm closing forever after health department fight

Hill Creek Farms in Mullica Hill will close after this year’s apple picking season, ending decades of family-friendly fruit picking, hayrides and sales of its renowned apple cider donuts.

The Gloucester County farm’s owner and founder, Fred Sorbello, announced the end of the business on the farm’s website.

“Of all my business successes, nothing measured up to farming, and all the memories it brought back to me of growing up on a farm,” Sorbello said in the announcement.

“It’s time to call it a career,” he wrote, saying the farm will close after the nine- or 10-week pick-your-own apple season that starts next month.

Sorbello blamed clashes with the local health department for prompting his retirement from farming.

“I refuse to deal with the Gloucester County Board of Health here forward. And sadly, potentially another New Jersey farm lost,” he wrote on the farm’s website.

Many of the farm’s usual attractions will not be open on Hill Creek’s opening day on Sept. 6, including the wine garden, market and the children’s playground. Patrons can still enjoy apple picking, sunflower fields, hayrides and barrel train rides for kids, the farm’s website said.

Many longtime fans flooded Hill Creek Farms’ Facebook page with well-wishes for Sorbello’s retirement and fond memories from years past.

“My son’s 2nd birthday pictures were taken on your farm! He’ll be 9 soon and we cherish those photos; we’ve gone every fall for apples since,” one mother said in a post.

“Best of luck to you, and I hope you enjoy your retirement! A few years ago, you let me bring my special needs daughter to your farm before opening for the day, so she could pick sunflowers without all the crowds. Your act of kindness is something that I have never forgotten,” another mother said.

Sorbello said the demands of running an agritourism farm prompted him to step down, but the final straw was continued pressure from the Gloucester County Health Department.

The department is responsible for overseeing health and safety standards determined by the state Department of Health. Sorbello said the regulatory demands on the “fun farm market” forced him to either invest heavily in upgrading farm operations or have one last goodbye to Hill Creek Farms.

Annmarie Ruiz, a health official from the Gloucester County Department of Health, told NJ Advance Media the county has had a multi-year correspondence with the farm about operations.

The exchanges started in 2018 when Hill Creek Farms applied for permission to add an employee bathroom on the market building’s second floor with no mention of expanding food facilities, Ruiz said.

Three years later, the county discovered the farm had expanded to a full-size kitchen and a rental venue that were not mentioned in its first application, she said. Officials notified the owner that the improvements were not authorized under the state approval process.

Hill Creek Farms agreed to scale back services, but the county later found operations again exceeded the approvals, Ruiz said. The disputes between the health department and farm continued for years until Sorbello announced the farm would end operations.

With a few weeks left in the season last year, the health department “did not shut them down, but we stated that the facility is not permitted to re-open for 2025 season unless they upgrade their septic accordingly or remove the kitchen operation,” the county said.

Sorbello said in his retirement announcement that the farm may have “pushed it too far,” but the demands the health department placed on a small family farm were too much.

While Hill Creek Farms will be closing down, Sorbello announced that MC Farms, run by Mario Caltabiano, will take over the apple-picking traditions at the site.

The final season at Hill Creek will be managed by Caltabiano, who will open his orchard a few miles up the road for families to make new memories.

“To all of you, thank you. Thank you for making Hill Creek Farms the number 1 Apple U-Pick destination of this tri-state area,” said Sorbello in his farewell announcement.