Here's what
they're saying.
Press and media
We want to get the word out about Cherry Vinegar! We have been fortunate enough to have several outlets take an interest in our story. Check out the stories below to learn more about our journey!
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recent mentions
February Business News: The Folded Leaf Heads For TC, Red Truck Orchards Grows, Blue Bird Closes 'Til Spring - 2/2/26
By Craig Manning at Leelanau Ticker
A popular Leelanau County bookstore is relocating to Traverse City, a local cherry vinegar brand is expanding its footprint, and one of the county’s favorite restaurants has closed until spring.
Read the full article here
Recipes: Little Chef Favorites Inside the Ingredients (and quick pickling recipe!) - 1/24/26
By Nora Rae Pearl at Northern Express
Sometimes we all need to take a break from the seriousness of cooking and remember why we enjoy it in the first place. For these recipes, we’re welcoming in little chefs to inspire us for some creative eats.
Read the article and get recipes here
wtcm visits red truck orchards - 1/20/26
WTCM in Northport, MI
On the Road with Scot Michaels presented by Solitude Float & Wellness Spa along with Truck Norris sponsored by Steven's Propane Maple City takes us to Red Truck Orchards in Northport! We talked with Operations Director Sam Reese, and Co-Founder Sarah Hallstedt about all things Cherry Vinegar! Made right here in Northern Michigan, we learned all the uses, and benefits around this great tasting creation! Sold locally, and online at redtruckorchards.com
Read the full post from WTCM here
From Sugar Loaf To Local Sports, Here's Leelanau County's 2025 By-The-Numbers Breakdown - 12/26/25
By Craig Manning at Leelanau Ticker
4,300+: The current production capacity, in bottles per month, at Red Truck Orchards, the new cherry vinegar brand spun out of Hallstedt Homestead Cherries in Northport. Per owner Phil Hallstedt, Red Truck Orchards is up to six team members and has so far engaged 38 retail stores to carry its product.
Read the full article here
Businesses For Sale, Food Trucks In Solon Township, And Other Leelanau Business News - 11/26/25
By Craig Manning at Leelanau Ticker
Hallstedt Homestead Cherries, as part of the expansion of its Red Truck Orchards cherry vinegar brand, announced earlier this month that the vinegar will now be carried at all Tom’s Food Markets.
Read the full article here
PODCAST: Red Truck Orchards goes all in on cherry vinegar
By Brian Freiberger at The Leelanau Enterprise
Sarah and Phil Hallstedt, owners of Hallstedt Homestead Cherries, are also the founders of their newest business venture, Red Truck Orchards. With the cherry season being short and sweet, their newest project, cherry vinegar, will allow people to taste and enjoy local cherries all-year round.
Listen to the full podcast here
US farmers issue warning as crucial crop becomes harder to grow: 'I gamble every year - 10/22/25
By Laurelle Stelle at The Cool Down
The more we pollute our atmosphere, the more heat it traps, and the hotter our planet gets, the more unstable the weather becomes. That doesn't just mean rainy days or hot summers; it's having a severe impact on agriculture around the globe, including in the United States.
This year, one of the impacted regions is Northern Michigan, where cherry farmers are seeing only 60% of the expected yield, according to Fresh Plaza.
Read the full article here
This Northport Farm Is Shifting Into Full Commercialization Mode For Its New Cherry Vinegar - 10/6/25
By Craig Manning at Leelanau Ticker
October will be a month of quantum leaps for Leelanau County’s Red Truck Orchards.
The brand, which produces a cherry vinegar made with locally-grown cherries, soft-launched last summer and grew its presence at local farmers markets this year. Now owner Phil Hallstedt says the brand is “rapidly scaling up” production, which will involve full-scale online availability, shelf presence at local grocery and specialty stores, and even a retail presence downstate.
Read the article here
Northern Michigan Cherry Growers Face challenges from weather and trade - 9/18/25
By Sheldon Krause at 9&10 News
Northern Michigan cherry farmers say they’re on the tail end of a difficult season as the state warns that specialty crop production is reaching a tipping point.
Some growers are optimistic about the future of the fruit and exploring new forms of cherry products — but they say that their predictions only go so far in an industry rife with uncertainty.
The Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development said that last year, farms lost between 30 and 90% of their cherry crops due to severe weather events.
Read the article here
Betting The Farm: Why A Northport Cherry Grower Is Going All In On Cherry Vinegar - 7/2/25
By Craig Manning at the Leelanau Ticker
Phil Hallstedt and his wife Sarah have a saying: “We don’t go to the casinos because we’re cherry farmers; we’re already gambling every day.” Perhaps it’s no surprise, then, that the Hallstedts are willing to take a big bet in hopes of saving their farm, the U-pick cherry destination Hallstedt Homestead Cherries in Northport.
Read the article here
M22 Expands To Suttons Bay, Cedar Gets An Indie Bookshop; Other Leelanau Business News - 4/23/25
By Craig Manning at the Leelanau Ticker
Hallstedt Homestead Cherries in Northport will get a $100,000 grant from MDARD to convert one of its existing agricultural buildings to “a commercial processing facility for expanded cherry vinegar production and new product development.” The money is an investment in the fledgling Red Truck Orchards brand, a “new collective of farms producing an artisan cherry wine vinegar.”
Read the article here
Hallstedts Launch New Cherry Vinegar - 2/13/25
By Meakalia Previch-Liu at the Leelanau Enterprise
Sarah and Phil Hallstedt, owners of Hallstedt Homestead Cherries, are also the founders of their newest business venture, Red Truck Orchards. With the cherry season being short and sweet, their newest project will allow people to taste and enjoy local cherries all-year round.
Read the article here
Lively NeighborFood Market Opens, Hallstedt Homestead Cherries Launches New Product Line - 7/12/24
By Craig Manning at the Leelanau Ticker
Hallstedt Homestead Cherries, a U-pick cherry farm in Northport, announced it will serve as “the home farm of Red Truck Orchards, a new collective of farms producing an artisan cherry wine vinegar.”
Read the article here