Ricker Hill Orchards

What Ricker Hill Orchards does

Ricker Hill Orchards is a family-owned and family-operated farm in Turner, Maine, in continuous operation since 1803 across nearly nine generations. The business is a single-site agritourism and direct-to-consumer agricultural operation at 295 Buckfield Rd, offering U-Pick apples (August–October across roughly twelve varieties) and U-Pick blueberries (July 15–September 15 at $3.50/lb), a fresh donut bakery with eleven flavors, a hard cider shop (Ricker's Hard Cider) producing farm-pressed alcoholic cider, and a maple sugar shack serving breakfast and maple-themed products. Recreational and event infrastructure layers on top of the agricultural core: an 18-hole disc golf course (plus four alternate holes) opened in May 2004 with day passes, annual passes, and a league; birthday party hosting in a pavilion; school tours for pre-K through high school; and corporate, wedding, and private event rental under a 20x40 tent for 50–100 people. Go-to-market is direct-to-consumer at the farm, supplemented by seasonal events (Maine Maple Weekend, fall festivals, fireworks, vendor fairs), a Facebook presence, a content/event website, and FareHarbor for online bookings. Revenue is generated through per-pound produce sales, per-item bakery and cider sales, per-pass activity fees, per-student school tour fees, and per-event venue rental; the company is private (no public ticker), unincorporated by legal suffix (likely sole proprietorship), has no parent company, no subsidiaries, no funding rounds, no M&A history, and operates with 1–10 employees.

Name

Ricker Hill Orchards

Legal name

Ricker Hill Orchards

Website

https://rickerhill.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1803

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Ricker Hill Orchards is a family-owned farm in Turner, Maine, in continuous operation since 1803, offering U-pick apples and blueberries, fresh donuts, hard cider, maple products, an 18-hole disc golf course, school tours, and event hosting to local families, school groups, and event organizers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

U-Pick Orchard and Farm Retail

NAICS

Fruit and Tree Nut Farming (1113), Berry (except Strawberry) Farming (111334)

SIC

Agricultural Production-Crops (100)

akta.pro primary industry

Cider & Orchard Fruit Production (Apples/pears for cider & processing) (AFAGACAJ)

akta.pro secondary industries

Berry Farming (Strawberries, Blueberries, Raspberries, Blackberries, Cranberries) (AFAGACAD), Farmers’ Markets & Farm Stands (Fresh Food) (CRAHAHAE)

Keywords

• Pick-your-own apples
• Farm hard cider
• Maple sugar shack
• Orchard farm experiences
• Disc golf course

Headquarters

HQ city

Turner

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. U-Pick Produce Sales: Customers pay by the pound for apples and blueberries they pick themselves. Apple varieties include Vista Bella, Jerseymac, Paula Red, Zestar (August), McIntosh, Cortland, Gala, Honeycrisp, Macoun (September), Northern Spy, Evercrisp, Empire, Jonagold (October). Blueberries available July 15-September 15 at $3.50/pound.
2. Fresh Donuts and Bakery: On-site bakery selling fresh apple cider donuts, chocolate, maple, plain old fashioned, blueberry, strawberry (May-August), pumpkin (August-Nov), molasses, and coffee flavored donuts.
3. Hard Cider Sales: Fresh hard cider made from apples grown and pressed on the farm. Never made from concentrate. Sold in packs at the orchard and Hard Cider Shop.
4. Maple Products: Maple Sugar Shack producing maple taffy, maple hard cider, hot maple donuts, maple ice cream, and maple weekend breakfast items (French toast, crepes, eggs, bacon, sausage, beans).
5. Disc Golf: 18-hole disc golf course plus 4 alternate holes. Revenue from day passes ($8), junior passes ($5), annual passes ($225 individual, $400 family), disc rentals ($3), and league weekly fees.
6. Birthday Parties and Events: Birthday party hosting with table reservations ($50 for 2 hours), individual activity passes (children $9.99, teens $3.99, adults $1), and catering options for donuts and bakery items.
7. School Tours: Educational farm tours for school groups with Harvest Tour ($5.50-$7.50 per student based on group size) and All Day Tour ($9.99-$13.99 per student). Includes apple orchard visits, petting zoo, corn maze, and educational components.
8. Corporate and Private Events: Event venue hosting under 20x40 party tent (fits 50-100 people) for corporate events, weddings, reunions, and private events.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Ricker Hill Orchards is a family-owned farm operating since 1803 in Turner, Maine, selling seasonal U-Pick apples (August-October) and U-Pick blueberries (July-September) by the pound, fresh homemade donuts in roughly a dozen flavors, hard cider pressed on-site from farm-grown apples, maple products from a sugar shack, and recreational activities including an 18-hole disc golf course. The farm also hosts birthday parties, school tours, and corporate/private events, monetizing its single physical footprint through agritourism and on-site food and beverage sales.

Product overview

Ricker Hill Orchards is a traditional family farm established in 1803, offering a diversified portfolio of agricultural and recreational services. The core experience centers on U-Pick Apples (August-October) and U-Pick Blueberries (July-September), complemented by freshly made products including donuts (11 flavors) and Hard Cider Shop offerings made from farm-grown apples. Additional seasonal services include Maple Sugar Shack with breakfast and maple treats, and a Disc Golf Course with 18 holes and pro shop. The farm provides event hosting services for birthday parties, school tours, and corporate/private events. The company operates as a single unified farm experience rather than a modular platform—visitors purchase tickets/reservations through third-party booking platforms (FareHarbor, TicketSpice) and can purchase products on-site or through the Online Shop.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Rickers Hard Cider: Fresh hard cider shop operated by Ricker Hill Orchards, creating hard cider from apples grown and pressed on their farm since 1803. The cider is never made from concentrate.

Products and services

• U-Pick Apples

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Lyman Orchards: A Connecticut family orchard with PYO apples, peaches, and berries, an on-site cidery, golf course, and seasonal events — analogous multi-revenue-stream agritourism orchard in the Northeast.
• Smolak Farms: A Massachusetts farm offering U-pick fruit, a farm stand, bakery, and event venue hosting weddings, corporate events, and school tours — a near-direct match on Ricker Hill's event-and-orchard combination.
• Honey Hill Orchard: A Camden, ME apple orchard offering U-pick apples plus a farm store — a close regional (Maine) peer competing for similar in-state visitors.
• Applecrest Farm Orchards: A New England (Hampton Falls, NH) family-owned orchard offering U-pick apples, blueberries, peaches, and strawberries plus a farm store, bakery, and event programming — directly comparable diversified agritourism model in the same region.
• Belltown Orchards: A Connecticut family-owned apple orchard combining U-pick with farm-market retail and seasonal events — comparable product mix and family-farm positioning.
• Tougas Family Farm: A multi-generation family farm in Northborough, MA offering U-pick apples, blueberries, peaches, and cherries plus a farm store, bakery, and school tours — closely matches Ricker Hill's U-pick plus farm-experience model.
• Chudleigh's Blossom Hill Farm: An Ontario, Canada family-owned apple orchard offering U-pick apples, a farm store, bakery, and seasonal event programming — comparable diversified family-orchard agritourism model.
• Cayford Orchards: A Skowhegan, ME family-owned U-pick apple orchard with a farm store — directly comparable Maine-based pick-your-own operator.

Broad incumbents

• Angry Orchard: A large, nationally distributed hard cider brand (Boston Beer Company). Serves as a broader-market incumbent in the hard cider category that competes with Ricker Hill's estate-pressed cider for consumer occasions.
• Woodchuck Hard Cider: A nationally distributed hard cider brand (formerly Vermont-based) operating at scale in the same downstream category as Ricker Hill's on-farm hard cider, illustrating the broader competitive set for hard cider product.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/rickerhill
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ricker-hill-orchards

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Ricker Hill Orchards