Pennsylvania's Agricultural Land Preservation Board last week added 27 farms to the state's list of protected properties, including eight in the midstate, according to a news release.

The state protects farms by purchasing development rights, known as conservation easements, from farm owners. The properties added last week totaled 2,358 acres. The midstate farms protected were as follows:

Cumberland County

• The Cheryl, Kandace, Steven and Thomas Nealy farm No. 1: 67.07 acres

• The Steven and Thomas Nealy farm No. 2: 161.66 acres

Dauphin County

• The Ronald and Roxanna Buffington farm No. 1: 76.32 acres

• The Masser Farms Realty Ltd. farm: 207.38 acres

Lancaster County

• The Esther, Katie, Lloyd and Mark Burkholder farm: 11.93 acres

• The Harvey and Susan Espenshade farm: 142.14 acres

• The Rose Hanks farm: 62.29 acres

• The KLE Partnership farm: 93.16 acres

• The Ceil and Forrest Sheffy farm: 10.35 acres

• The Christ and Sadie Sholtzfoos farm: 73.11 acres

In all, the state has protected 4,320 farms totaling 465,953 acres since the program's inception in 1988, according to the Department of Agriculture.