A Festival with Roots: Inside Avrom Farm Party’s Music-and-Food Weekend
Call it Lollapalooza for locavores: In rural Wisconsin, a former farm transforms into a three-day celebration of live music, open fields, and regenerative food—with deep roots in Chicago.
In 2023, Hayden Holbert had to make a difficult decision. After years of running Avrom Farm in rural Wisconsin, he found himself isolated, uninspired, and running low on funds. It was time to close the book on this chapter of his farm.
While Avrom Farm’s routine production reached its conclusion, there was still one annual event Holbert wasn’t ready to let go of: Avrom Farm Party. Founded in 2018 with friend Spencer Tweedy, Avrom Farm Party is a weekend-long festival that invites folks from Chicago to Green Lake, Wisconsin to connect with music and food in a unique setting. “We love putting [the festival] on because of that cultural mixing. Folks from Chicago get a chance to go to a festival and have an interaction with food producers in that landscape. It’s rewarding to see,” says Holbert.
And that landscape truly is one-of-a-kind. The festival takes place on Holbert’s family farm, which was purchased in the early 1950s by his grandfather, Lester Schwartz. Schwartz was a sculptor and at one time had over 100 massive scale sculptures throughout the property. During its days as a production farm, hogs happily used a few of Shwartz’s sculptures scattered throughout the pasture as scratching posts. Today, 30 to 40 sculptures remain throughout Avrom Farm’s rolling hills.
Music, of course, plays a big role in the festival experience. Each year, Farm Party curates a lineup of up-and-coming artists in a range of different genres. This year’s lineup features rapper and singer McKinley Dixon, indie rock duo Babehoven, singer songwriter Pictoria Vark, and more.
But perhaps the most important feature that sets Farm Party apart from the Midwest’s litany of music festivals is its commitment to fresh food and regenerative farming. It’s not just part of the festival’s ethos; it’s built directly into its design.
While most festivals hide food production behind the scenes, Farm Party puts it front and center—literally. The festival’s kitchen is at its heart, with stages, camping, and more built around it. “Our goal is to create this immersive experience, where you can enjoy food that’s all sourced from regenerative farms and actually see it being made,” explains Holbert.
Each festival weekend features a set menu of locally farmed food at affordable prices. Single day and weekend passes are available, starting at $75 before tax and fees. Attendees can purchase meals a la carte or add on the weekend’s menu for $80.
Holbert prioritizes an accessible price point to support the mission of the festival and reflect his desire to connect Chicagoans to the Midwest’s many regenerative farms. Holbert explains, “We want to support our neighbors and farmers in the area and get their food into people’s hands that couldn’t otherwise afford it.”
This year’s menu features produce from Avrom Farm’s neighbors including Nichols Farm and Orchard, Smits Farm, Boerson Farm, Ellis Family Farms, and Joes Blues Farms, as well as roasted hogs from Gunthrop, to name a few.
In addition to Avrom Farm Party’s musical lineup and nutritious, farm-fresh food, this year’s festival features something new: agricultural workshops. Attendees can attend a flower propagation workshop, learn about growing tomatoes, and more. Festival-goers will leave the festival nourished, rejuvenated, and inspired to bring regenerative farming practices into their daily lives.
In 2024, Holbert and Tweedy launched the Farm Share Alliance, a nonprofit that channels festival proceeds into grants for Chicago-based food aid organizations.. As the festival grows, the duo plans to grow Farm Share Alliance along with it.
Avrom Farm Party will be held August 15-17, 2025 at Holbert’s family farm in Green Lake, Wisconsin. Tickets are on sale now at avromfarmparty.com.
