CNY Cheese

FOR SALE: Suzie Abbott

2011-03-15T21:55:00.003-04:00

FOR SALE: Heamour Farm NC Suzie Abbott
Experimental doe. Wonderful markings. She is the middle one in this picture. Her brother Clarence is for sale too, but is not registerable. Mother has nice udder with high rear attachment and pleasant fore udder. She is gentle and easy to milk considering she has not been handled a lot. Dad is a well bred Lamancha. This would make a very nice dairy doe for someone. $200

For Sale

2011-03-15T21:28:00.003-04:00

FOR SALE: Experimental Doe. Blue Dairy NC Angelica
Blue Dairy is Claire's prefix. This is a very lovely experimental dairy doe. Her dad is an extremely well bred Lamancha with smashing udders all over the pedigree. He does improve common does, but when you cross him onto something as lovely as Claire's doe Kickadee Hill KHJD Ava, well, you have something special. This doe basically takes a Kickadee Hill saanen and puts Lamancha ears on it. Money from the sale of Claire's goats goes directly into her college fund. She would like $300 for this kid.

Kids Sire: Nestor Acres Idol's Conner; he is a purebred Lamancha
Sire: CH Mint*Leaf American Idol, littermate to Mint*Leaf American Beauty
2008 2nd place Sr. Kid at Nationals
SS: Altrece Cosmopolitan
SSS: Willow Run Bugatti Spartan
SSD: CH Altrece Wish Granted
SD: CH The Preference Flyer 2008 & 2010 National Show Reserve GCH,
2008 Best Udder & 2010 Reserve Best Udder
SDS: Singing-Hills Preference
SDD: Singing-Hills TT Brenna

Dam: CH Pine-Springs Scouts Cora LA 8-04 91(EEEE)
DS: Pine Springs SS Scouts Redman
DSS: +*B Redwood-Hills Nomad Scout
DSD: CH South-Fork DV Satin
DD: Pine-Springs Corona LA 89(VEEV)
DDS: ++*B SG Haute Caprine Pulsar
DDD: GCH Pine Springs McCorinne LA 91(EEEE)

Kids Dam: Kickadee Hill KHJD Ava, American Saanen
Sire: *B Kickadee Hill WRS James Dean
SS: CH Willow Run Stormfront Stuck Up 3-05 88(VVE)
SSS: Windsor Manor DD Stormfront
SSD: SGCH Windsor Manor WMDM Stormy 4-00 90(VVEE)
SD: GCH Kicakdee Hill WMV Jorgette 6*M 2-03 89(VEEE)
SDS: +B Windsor Manor AA Victor 7-03 91(EEE) 2004 Premier Sire
SDD: SGCH Kicakdee Hill Jeena 5*M 2-03 87(+VEE)

Dam: Kickadee Hill KHG Abigail
Sire: *B Kickadee Hill WMV Gabriel 1-04 92(EEE)
SS: +B Windsor-Manor AA Victor 7-03 91(EEE) 2004 Premier Sire
SD: GCH Kickadee-Hill Morning Glory 6*M 5-04 90(VVEE)
Dam: SGCH Willow Run Dreammaker Arlene 2*M 5-04 92(EEEE)
DS: SG ++*B Windsor Manor WMT Dream Maker 3-03 90(VEE)
DD: Willow Run Visionquest Anneka *M

FOR SALE: Heamour KJ Jillian

2011-03-09T13:40:00.002-05:00

For Sale: Heamour KJ Jillian. American Saanen, registration pending. She is by our Jr. Herdsire King-Farm CSOC Breeze Jordan http://www.adgagenetics.org/GoatDetail.aspx?RegNumber=S001540229 out of Kickadee Hill KHA Johanna http://www.adgagenetics.org/GoatDetail.aspx?RegNumber=S001486207. This is Johanna's second lactation. This doe should mature over 200# and takes after her grandmother SGCH Kickadee Hill Janey *5M http://www.kickadeehill.com/janey.htm. I am keeping her sister for now. Should do well in show ring. I took picture when she was 5-days old and it is hard for me to get a kid to stand for a photo without making them stretch out like a Saddlebred or hunch their back. She is lovely and should milk well. $400.

FOR SALE: Heamour KJ Amelia Bedelia

2011-03-09T13:26:00.002-05:00

For Sale: Heamour KJ Amelia Bedelia E1544165. born 1/18/2011. Sire is one of our Jr. Herdsires King-Farm CSOC Breeze Jordan AS1540229. Mother is an alpine I bought last year from Karen Fisher. Swamp-Hill Astilbe AA1540232. This is one I should keep, but I am trying to keep only 5-replacements and will be doing so from older does I bought this last year. Excellent width in rump, wonderful shoulders, well balanced and has excellent substance. Her mother has a will to milk and her father is doubled up on Prime Rate (milk). $300.

For Sale: Annabelle

2011-03-09T13:15:00.004-05:00

FOR SALE: Sweet doe, born 5/14/2010. Mother is a lovely saanen doe that our daughter owns. Father is an Arapawa buck that is now at Nettle Meadows. She is cream colored. We disbudded her. I planned to milk her, but with 20-does kidding and many older members that I really should keep daughters from, project goats like Annabelle have to be sold. She is not registerable, but I will give you a complete pedigree for your records. She should be moderate sized with lovely components. $200.

First money and pick up takes precedence in all sales. We try to be as honest as possible about all matters of health and breeding. You are welcome to view flock and records. Sire and Dam are CAE and Johnne's negative.

Definitions II - Allergy vs Lactose Intolerance

2011-01-07T10:13:00.002-05:00

This is something that I learned more about as I started to make cheese. It is easy to misunderstand the difference, because most Dr.'s have problems understanding food allergies and sensitivities. There are different body systems that react when you are allergic vs. lactose intolerant. Often there are overlapping symptoms.

When I sold yogurt, I ended up running into people that also had issues with certain probiotics that were in the yogurt and wanted to know how long it cultured for (more lactic acid = less lactose). It was through a lot of those people that I started to gain a better understanding of these differences. For those with allergies, man this is a matter of life or death. It is important that you go beyond this blog and really learn more before you believe every marketing slant that people have for their products.

Lactose intolerance happens because the body is lacking an enzyme called lactase. This enzyme takes the milk sugar, lactose, and breaks it down into usable bits in the body. When you are lactose intolerant, you make gas. So, you feel bloated, burp, feel nauseous, may get diarrhea. It is more an uncomfortable relationship to milk.

For those that are lactose intolerant, they may be able to consume aged cheeses, yogurt, and lactic cheeses. To make lactic cheese and yogurt, cheese makers are using bacteria that love lactose to help with the coagulation process. They convert this lactose into lactic acid (and other flavor making by-products). There are not a lot of lactose molecules left in the process of making these products.

In longer aged cheeses, like cheddar(real ones, not industrial garbage), the bacteria are still working on the lactose in the cave (aging).

Make note of the age of the particular kind of cheese and sample only a small amount until you find your tolerance level.

An allergy to milk can be life threatening. In this case, your body has developed antibodies to some protein component of that milk. There are a lot of proteins associated milk. Breeds of animals and species of animals have different proteins and amounts of proteins in their milk. While it is highly unlikely that you can isolate the protein components that you have issues with, it may help you select another animal that you can tolerate.

As with intolerance, you can get abdominal issues, but generally, you see eczema or a skin reaction as well. More severe allergic reactions involve the respiratory system. This may start simple, like seasonal allergies, but can become life threatening to some people. The kicker with this is that sometimes symptoms start the next day, so it is hard to associate it with the drink of milk you had the day before.

For some people, they may not be able to consume cows milk, but they can consume goat or sheep milk. If you are having respiratory issues with cows milk, I would not even try goat or sheep milk unless the EpiPen and a Dr. are right there with you for 24-hours.

Some myths...
*If you are allergic to milk, being raw will not make it more tolerable.
*You will tolerate goat milk if you are allergic to cows milk, not lactose intolerant.
*Homogenization does things to milk, but it has nothing to do with lactose.
*Goat milk is not naturally homogenized, the fat just stays suspended longer. This, too has nothing to do with lactose and your ability to consume it if you are lactose intolerant.
*You may also be allergic to what the animal ate! If you are committed to drinking milk, work with Dr. on this, don't go it alone. Allergies are not something to play with. You can die.

I tried to make this simple. I hope this helps.

I also wanted to say, that there were times that I advised people interested in buying our products that it was ok that they cannot eat dairy. I was not going to hold it against them and they did not have to please to by buying my products.

Definitions I - Heritage as it relates to Cattle

2011-01-05T13:07:00.002-05:00

I am starting a series on definitions of products to help the consumer understand what this flurry of words means when they go to their coop or farmers market. I hope that by helping you come up with an understanding about what this means in the marketplace, you can ask informed questions of the vendors to see if they are producing and selling what it is that you are, in fact, looking for.

I will start with the definition of Heritage as it relates to Cattle and their products. ALBC just launched this definition at the Annual Meeting in November, 2010 in Hamilton, NY. Marjorie Bender did an excellent job of moderating this discussion and the results are a very nice definition. http://albc-usa.org/heritagecattle/definition.html .

In a nutshell:

Heritage Cattle Products must come from:

* Heritage Cattle only.
* Herds with ongoing breed selection practices for longevity, fertility, and productivity.
* Herds that follow sustainable management practices that provide for animal well-being

~ diets that are all plant-based, and primarily forage-based.
~ raised primarily in open, pasture or range, environments. This specifically excludes total confinement operations.
~ free from routine prophylactic antibiotics.
~ free from administered synthetic or natural growth promoters or growth hormones.
~ humanely slaughtered.

A. Definition of Heritage Beef Products:
Beef animals and their products marketed as Heritage Beef must:

* Be produced from the mating of registered, purebred parent stock.
~ This allows for the sale as Heritage of those offspring that are produced by mating registered animals of two different Heritage breeds.
* Include the name of the breed of that animal on the label, or the two Heritage breeds used in crossbred production.

B. Definition of Heritage Milk or Heritage Milk Products:
Milk marketed as Heritage Milk must:

* Be exclusively from animals that have been produced from the mating of registered, purebred parent stock.
~ This allows for the sale as Heritage of milk from those offspring that are produced by mating registered animals of two different Heritage breeds.
* Include the name(s) of the breed(s) of the animals on product label.

Products made with Heritage Milk:

* Must be made exclusively with Heritage Milk to use Heritage in the product name.
* As an ingredient may use “Made with Heritage Milk” on the label but cannot use Heritage in the product title, and the label must state the percentage of milk from each Heritage breed.
* Must include the name(s) of the breed(s) of the animals on product label.

Terms like “heirloom,” “antique,” old-fashioned,” and “old timey” imply heritage and are understood to be synonymous with the definition provided here

Mission and Goals II

2010-11-29T13:46:00.002-05:00

We have had our first volley of conversation about what it is that we want to achieve or do in the next 10-years. Going back to those goals. Revisiting the mission statement.
Dave:
*I want to milk 15 cows
*I want to sell my veal calves at a sustainable price
*I want to retire from full-time farming in 10-years
*Should we buy this one hay piece that we use and is for sale?
*I need help with forage harvesting
*I do not want to work myself into the grave..
Shannon:
*I want to hire someone to do afternoon chores
*I want to hire someone to do affinage
*I want to make enough cheese to provide all of us a sustainable income
*I am not the retirement plan for Dave
*I want to make dulce de leche and dulce de cajeta as well as cheese
*I want to invest in someone that is willing to learn, but has a benefit to my business rather than just offer workshops and do consulting...

This is a start. This is where we are in the process of bringing our goals back and rethinking our mission.

So far it is agreed that we may need to hire 1 1/2 people. The processing business MUST expand if we are going to pay for all of this. It looks like consulting and workshops are going to be replaced with intern/business partner type arrangement. Dave may want to replace pasture veal with milking in 10-years.

We want to talk to Claire too. She is 8-years old and her decisions will make an impact on what we do after this 10-years are up (succession planning). Right now, she needs to focus on being Claire. The question is, she loves to be in the barn milking her goats every night. This is 7-days a week. Is this too much for her? Does she just want to go to 2-milkings a week and try something else like swimming?

After we get this sorted, then we go on to enterprise budget for 1 1/2 people and what it is that we want from an employee. How much is a sustainable wage? Is there someone local (with housing), or do we have to import someone looking for housing as well as salary...

Cross Roads

2010-11-28T17:19:00.002-05:00

My mom continually asked me "What do you plan to do with your life?". That was often coupled with "What are you studying this semester?". Now it is just "What are you up to?" Every fall and into winter I ask myself what I plan to do next year.

I just completed the first of two workshops for ALBC on dairy farming using heritage breeds. This was a beta version. I think that it went well. The thing that hit me the most was a comment Dennis Moore with NY Dept of Ag & Markets said. There are 34 new dairy processing operations in NY that started this year!

The knee jerk reaction for someone in the industry is to say that they will not be here in 2-5 years. Arrogant, confident response. In my market area I often wonder how many the region CAN hold onto considering the scrapping I've done with others to help build a local food system.

My cheeses and dairy products are good enough to stand on their own and I can always sell them outside of this area. The thing is that, going back to the workshop, I talked about mission statements and goals and revisiting them to see where you are.

The mission statement was "To make cheeses that taste great. To provide a stable milk price for the dairy. To provide an on farm income for me." I do the first sentence. I make a consistent cheese. It is a nice table cheese. People consistently purchase it year after year.

The second statement was thrown out the window this year. It is not that I did not pay Dave for the milk. It is not that I underpaid him for his milk. I did not buy it. I used milk from goats. I always wanted to milk goats. Kept trying to purchase it. When Claire said she wanted to show something... I bought enough goats to make a batch of cheese! So what of those cows? He is organic now and we are on winter program. This means we are paid $28/hwt. Can I afford to or do I need to buy his milk?

The third statement. Ah, that third one. My cheese business was going great guns until we had this crisis of place and decided to move closer to family. We decided not to move a cave of cheese (because where do you find a handy and empty cave to borrow) and I sold out of cheese. I stated up in March this year and had to basically sit on cheese until 6-weeks ago! I did more consulting work this year.

I helped Stolzfus Dairy learn how to make cheddar curd. I wrote this workbook for ALBC on how to do dairy processing using heritage breeds. I worked on the conference. I did some other putter things related to dairy. I also started R&D on confectionery products.

Confectionery products. They taste lovely. They are easy, yet time consuming. They helped me with ego issues related to not having cheese for all of those people who rang looking for cheeses that had to hang around. It is a handy way to use late lactation goat milk.

So now I am at this point where I need to tell Peter, yes, I am committed to that Fire Cooker for caramel and goat fudge. I need to just ramp up cheese making (including going back to using our cows milk). I need to decide whether or not I need to help more people get into this business...

I have a week to make decisions. It is thrown into my court. Dave wants me to focus on cheese only. No consulting. No workshops. No caramel. Just cheese. I like all of the above and know I need to hire someone to do affinage and someone to milk goats in the evening. I feel like I CAN do all of those things, yet I am so exhausted from trying to do all of them for a year now. Really tired and I have an injured foot that probably needs either surgery of steroid injections because I felt I could do everything.

So, rewrite mission statement or go back to it? I feel like I cannot make this decision so exhausted, but I have a week to do it.

Claire Poem

2010-10-30T19:28:00.002-04:00

I found this in Claire's writing book. Date 10/28/10.

Pick pumpkin in the field.
Use a knife to carve a pumpkin.
My pumpkin is scary.
Pumpkin pie is good.
Keep the seeds for next year.
I can carve pumpkin.
Now it is time for Halloween.

Ashland Kuhler

2010-08-21T21:09:00.003-04:00

Amish Water-Circulating Milk Cooler

*Heavy 304 Stainless Steel Construction
*Silver Soldered to meet inspection and added strangth
*Long-Life - fow friction bearing
*Brass ball-valves - easy flow control
*Fast cooling - low water consumption
*Operates on low water pressure - 10'drop is sufficient
*NEEDS NO ELECTRICITY or other power sources
*Cut-off 5/8" water hose connects easily to nipple

Sold in kit form with brush and 1" dial thermometer.
Guaranteed 1-year against parts or workmanship and or full refund if not satisfied.

$155/each.

Schenectady Greenmarket

2009-06-25T10:17:00.003-04:00

Marge from Argyle Cheese Farmere rang to see if I would fill in her space at Schenectady Greenmarket on Sundays. It is a hike and I have to figure out who will milk the goats, but we agreed to do it. The market is new and is well run. I have also decided to do only Producer Only markets. We will bring:
Fromage Blanc
Quark
Triple Cream Quark
Fresh Mozzarella
Fresh Mozz curd
Feta
Dunlop curd
Yoghurt
Labneh (Greek Yoghurt)
flavored bits of this and that
As the market progresses, I'll bring a tomme and some other aged cheeses.

We are not certifying the cheese side, only the cow dairy. We switched from ProCert to Baystate Organic Certifiers and to make it easier, we are doing it this way.

Come see us at the Market!

World's Top 10 Seed Companies

2009-02-01T10:29:00.002-05:00

Company - 2007 seed sales (US$ millions) - % of global proprietary seed
market

1.Monsanto (US) - $4,964m - 23%
2.DuPont (US) - $3,300m - 15%
3.Syngenta (Switzerland) - $2,018m - 9%
4.Groupe Limagrain (France) - $1,226m - 6%
5.Land O' Lakes (US) - $917m - 4%
6.KWS AG (Germany) - $702m - 3%
7.Bayer Crop Science (Germany) - $524m - 2%
8.Sakata (Japan) - $396m - <2%
9.DLF-Trifolium (Denmark) - $391m - <2%
10.Takii (Japan) - $347m - <2%
Top 10 Total - $14,785m - 67% [of global proprietary seed market]
Source: ETC Group

.....................................
People in the world are going to become more and more hungry. Look at what corporate greed is doing to banks. The U.S. government has no desire to do anything with corporate greed in the agricultural sector. Milk prices are tanking on the conventional market and they are putting all of us on 1 year contracts with the organic market. You don't think they are going to try to hose the organic dairy people next?

Here you go Obama. Want to change something? Start with the bedrock of society...agriculture and make it a more sustainable system. Like a seed is quality soil, it grows healthy...

Mom School

2009-01-13T18:22:00.002-05:00

Mom School is what Claire calls being homeschooled. Here are photos of her study area and a field trip with Grammy Rice and Dad (and me) to MOST in Syracuse. She is doing a lot better and just finished her first reader and is taking her 3rd ATS Math test! We are plugging along in reading and her list of words she confidently reads is skyrocketing now that Mrs. Hagan is not in charge.

Two great things she did recently are:
1. Ask to read a book and then do it on her own!
2. Do science charts on her own. Asking people questions and making charts to recod data and then translating data! Woohoo.

Planning

2009-01-11T11:56:00.002-05:00

Everyone who dreams is a planner. Some are better at dreaming than others. Some are just as unrealisting in their dreams as they are in real-life planning.

Last night I had this odd dream that we moved the whole farm operation somewhere artic. You know, where the day is night this time of year. It was oddly realistic, down to the chill going through my central NY winter garb and the small wood stove centric houses, many abandoned... We were up there with our cows and trying to figure out how to graze them like raindeer on the lichen and moss.

With the Smokey House plan I waited until the last minute to follow through on the financials plans. Could not get ahold of "my man" and I had to do them on the fly. I like to hire this out. I am a planner, but took way more science and ag classes than business. I felt slightly fooling, but went ahead with the usual confidence. The thing is we CAN make that work and I don't like people knowing everything about me or my business. We adapt to meet the need and I cannot tell you in concrete fact what I will be doing in 6 months time anymore.

Erin goes in for a heart cath. Monday. She is totally positive something absolutely negative is going to happen. The problem is that there is no plan for the bad thing that can happen. No written by lawyer plan. She is also banking on an insurance plan to bail the kids out if something does happen to her. The thing is that there is no plan. No written plan.

I've worked in the rare breeds world for a time now. I've seen grand ambitions presented before. I've worked on rescue plans after they fail. I sometimes think that if people say your plan is crazy or not totally sane, it is time to evaluate this plan to see if they see something you do not. Ask questions. Make more plans.

Now to finish the strategic plan for the Kerry cattle project and the more ambitious Heritage Cow project.

Happy Halloween from Claire

2008-11-06T18:12:00.001-05:00

Flower Parts

2008-10-09T08:38:00.002-04:00

Claire has this teacher that has labeled her as "behind" because I homeschooled her last year. I know she has a hard time with phonics and learning how to read. Kinda why I looked into a school. I was clear with that. She is having a hard time consistently understanding how sounds go together. One day she gets it, one day she cannot remember what "a" or "e" or some blend sounds like.

I felt a "professional" can help me teach her skills to "get" it consistently. Instead, I get that she is a "failure". That is Claire's term. I am constantly trying to come up with things to show her she is not a failure and that she is a smart girl, a beautiful girl and that all of the things about Claire are unique and special.

She is not stupid and I cannot say I did anything of a disservice to her. When I tried all I could with my resources, I enrolled her in school. Now that this has happened, I've found more resources and am getting results at home with her. The teacher prefers to send her home with assessments that have a failing mark and tell me that she is not capable of learning because I homeschooled her... Can it be that Claire does not hear the teacher, or understand her or get a certain accent? Can it be something about a student distracting her? I don't know, I am trying to keep a business and household together here, not there...

Claire is excellent in math and science though.

This is a scan of a drawing she did of the parts of a flower. The key is she did of the parts of a flower. Yah, she has two of them spelled wrong, but it comes out of a college text book that she and I found when she asked me what the stamen and other flower parts were called. Now,tell me she is dumb or behind? I don't get why she is able to do the work here and will not for the teacher there? The whole point of first, second and third grade is to seek improvement and completion of the basics of learning, not develop test anxiety.

I am dissapointed with this whole "school" process and I have no idea what to do. The thing is that if we leave, we are letting this teacher win too. She gets to keep the students that will succeed in her program. Woohoo. I am learning that 100% pass of tests has less to do with encouraging a full learning experience and more to do with pushing kids out of a program that does not fit into a mold. The irony is that she can and is still trying to blame it on me...

My instinct is to pull her out and homeschool again. Dave, to enroll her in the podunk local elementary school that caused a lot of the problems in the first place.

leaves are changing

2008-10-06T18:08:00.002-04:00

...and blowing...

I had a wonderful time at Argyle Cheese Farmer in Argyle, NY this weekend. Made cheese with Val Bines as expert cheese technologist and "the girls". The words for the week were "flocculation" (a perennial cheese workshop favorite) and "quiescence".

We made a bid on a farm in Hebron. Apparently they feel that the markets are not dropping like the rest of the world. Confidence is nice. I wish it would spread through the rest of the world right now. Maybe our farm will sell then... A wet farm with nothing fancy for soils and a derelict barn (we were hoping to call home?)... They countered with double our offer. Our offer was not bad either. Funny, they actually want us to buy the whole deal, but it brings the farm back over $300,000. This farm acquisition project in this county is odd. In one farm they want a balloon payment in 5 years on a $350,000 farm. In one they up the price by $50,000 in the two weeks from our calling for an appointment to our coming to the showing, without a call. This was with a burn and bulldoze house project.. I hear it takes a year to find a perfect place in this county, but this is absurd.

I dislike the schools out here in central New York with a passion. They are condescending to parents and they offer nothing creative or encouraging to the children. The whole thing used to be about making it fun to learn, not giving a first grader test anxiety or expecting parents to do the brunt of the teaching. Why not homeschool again? I am so disappointed in a paid tuition school too. We pay taxes to a regional school for nothing and then a tuition for a system that is not any better, but in other ways.

It is an easy thing to get discouraged. There are a few of us out here who have worked hard to get people "into" the concept of buying local food. With the economy turning the way it did, and so fast... all of this work was for nothing. This cheap at all costs, almost determined to be poor mentality is too much to bear. I am so sad to see us leave,but Ineed to be around a group of people that appreciate good food made locally...

We also need to be near my mom and David's family. It often takes moving far away to appreciate where you come from, right?

Autumn

2008-09-27T18:33:00.002-04:00

The word autumn always seems so solemn. Fall to flippant. It is natures way of easing us into the deep freeze. Fair enough. I just wish there were another word to describe how this time of year makes me feel.

Claire finally passed her spelling test! Woohoo. No to get her to consistently remember the kindergarten words so that the teacher believes me when I say she knows more than she lets on... So much for the easy life...

Dave and I found Claire talking to her chickens again. She brought down one of her play chairs and was sitting there with the one hen that survived the Belle attack. It was sweet and reminded us that Claire does have a sweet side to her. She is a good kid.

We are going to look at another round of properties in the Washington County area again. I need closure on all of this, but it is hard to look at farms. People want estate prices now. You cannot afford much of anything and expect to be a non-trustfund or other income farmer east of the Hudson river. I think that is what is making Dave and I the most anxious. We want to be in an area that is now estate agriculture. We knew that, but I think denial helped us cope until now.

Well, Claire is out of time out and I have to get back to help finish chores.

Patrick

2008-09-24T19:19:00.002-04:00

I know Marcia wants me to post something about Claire. Sorry. Today it is all about Patrick. I have to pick him up from Kelly Meats. He should be in little vacuum sealed packages, frozen, ready for the grill.

We raise our own meat on the farm. We name the animals and treat them well. They do have a purpose. He is a nice veal calf. Ayrshire cattle make a nice pink veal with a lovely flavored meat. I like them more than Holstein veal. This one was fattened on a brood cow. A kerry one, Maxine.

Thoughts While Driving

2008-09-12T21:03:00.002-04:00

My mom is going to be ok for now. At least the lymph is not cancerous. Only, she does have sarcoidosis. I am only scratching the surface of that condition. It is one more thing to research, to worry, to figure out. I just don't care for the lack of balance thing. I am terrified that she will go upstairs at work (granite stairs) and fall down or something. I am 3-4 hours away.

I came home after getting notes home from teacher. You know I do not care for this lack of communication thing I get here in CNY. Kinda like this job where they said, "there is your desk, your files...good luck..." What does that mean? Are you trying to set me up for failure?

Basically Claire is having test anxiety and teacher anxiety and apparently she feels she can blame it on my homeschooling Claire. I am sorry, but the teacher had her change her hadwritting (that she was taught in nursery, pre-K and my K program). She gave her different words. She asked them to start spelling and basically offered no transition, no interaction with parents at this "Open house" where we are to sit and listen to her theories on education adn then watch another parent take over the situation. No follow through with us...

After paying $4000, this woman feels that with 8 kids in class, she does not have time for my daughter and that I am doing a disservice to my child by not letting her stay back in school! There are 21 kids in that class. Claire did her work for us. I did not get to talk to her. She told me her view point and that was final. I am not a happy person. I am a very unhappy person. I do not want this woman to ruin my daughter. Claire feels she "didn't win". How do I explain to Claire (for her to believe me) that it is ok and that it was not a race. She did not have to "win", only do her best.

I did not sleep. I have faint spells and I think I'm either allergic or getting a rash...

What to do with the cheese business this fall? I'm thinking just yoghurt and milk for pasteurized and raw milk for cheese. That or sell and move to civilization and start up in 2 years again.

Being dissapointed sucks.

I have to drive to MI for conference next weekend. 10 hours 22 minutes. I'll have time to sort out my thoughts I think... I wish I had my Gale dog. She would understand and come with me to listen. I miss that dog soooo much today. It is strange to miss her again. She has been gone for 4 years. Stinks to loose your soul mate.

First Day of School!!!!!

2008-09-04T07:30:00.002-04:00

Woohoo! Claire goes off to St. Mary's School today. She is excited. She will tell us later today if she still loves St. Mary's. The uniform makes her look way cute. She giggled and hugged me when I told her I wrote that.

Here she is!

September Already

2008-09-03T07:42:00.003-04:00

Yup, the leaves are changing. You don't need the fan on at night and Claire starts school tomorrow.

Dave had a conversation with the Manhattan boys yesterday. They wanted us to beg them to buy the farm. We don't need to. They wanted us to sell them a fully outfitted farm, fully staffed and all. They wanted the cheese plant, a CSA staff, logistics, etc. All for $295,000. Basically, after 2 post-visit phone calls, these guys are morons. Yup. Not as smart as they want to think they are. The failed the first rule of business.

KNOW WHAT YOU ARE BUYING.

Don't insult the seller and don't keep insisting that you know what you are doing. Also remember, we all deal cash in agriculture. It does not make a difference if you pay cash or not. We are still talking about depreciable expenses and we will still claim all of the money. We also use an attorney and we will be buying another piece of land. The biggest thing, we own the farm outright. We aren't selling because we own too much. We own all of this.

OK. What is this talk of buying and selling?

Well. It is not secret that Dave and I want to get a little closer to family. My mom is alone in MA and her health is not as great (for someone who is still 39years old). Ken and Marcia are too far for Claire to visit regularly and we want to be closer to them as well. It has been a hard year for us. There are responsibilities 4 hours away in one direction and we are here.

The thing is we don't HAVE to move. We do like this farm. We do have great customers and friends here. WE want someone who will continue what we are doing. I like to see completion (rather than closure) on this whole local food thing in central NY.

The farm has been cleaned up a lot. The house is starting to get all of the cosmetic stuff done to it. Structurally it is great now. The barn has had a lot done and will continue to get a lot done to it. The deal shipping milk to Hood has been fine. The cheese business does offer an on-farm income to me. It also stabilizes the milk price for the dairy. We have rented land that is next door (and one field 6 miles away). You can also buy that land if you want to.

One theory is to drop back to 8-12 cows seasonally. Make 6-7000# of raw aged cheese and do veg. for the rest of the acreage. You can make a very nice income that way. It is also a great lifestyle. Kinda like the model Orb Weaver has in VT. I really like that model. It is also quite a sustainable one, without working the person into the ground.

I don't know. I think one of the biggest reservations about these guys from Manhattan was not that they do not understand dairy farming, the dairy industry or any of that. It was that they only saw that you get money up front (probably $850) for a CSA and that the wetlands were a liability. A liability! They are an asset to the watershed. They also provide wetland habitat to wood ducks, wetland species of plants and are where you grow cedar. The CSA is also a relationship between community and farmer. They missed that. F&^$ hated the flies and the whole thing about the farm, constantly asking if Tom's half starved cows were "happy". They have no intentions of being a farmer. They missed the crucial thing about linking the consumer and food. They were just about the money. The irony is that they don't know how to make it farming. They don't want to farm. They don't care about the environment of their consumers getting the best food.

We are still hare and will still keep producing food for sale. If it sells, it sells. If not. We are here and happy to make food. We also will not talk about honest people interested in being a part of the food shed in CNY and our farm on the blog if they are interested. These guys just missed the whole picture and it made me loose sleep because they don't care about the upstate farm economy, the environment or the crucial link between farmer and consumer. THey sell organic milk into NYC and only see it as a commodity and not getting their consumer a food product that they believe in. M*$$ though organic was a joke. That rotted dirt.

Biodiversity vs. Human Greed

2008-08-29T15:38:00.002-04:00

Calf. Farmers Use Guns, Poisin to Safeguard Crops

By TRACIE CONE, Associated Press Writer
18 minutes ago

FRESNO, Calif. - Farmers in "America's Salad Bowl" are turning into hunters — stalking wild pigs, rabbits and deer — to keep E. coli and other harmful bacteria out of their fields.

It's part of an intense effort to prevent another disaster like the 2006 spinach contamination that killed three people, sickened 200 and cost the industry $80 million in lost sales.

The exact source of the contamination was never discovered, but scientists suspect that cattle, feral pigs, or other wildlife may have spread the E. coli by defecating near crops.

The pressure to safeguard crops comes from the companies that buy fresh greens. In response, some farmers are taking gun-safety classes to learn how to shoot animals that could carry the bacteria. Others are uprooting native trees and plants and erecting fences to make their land inhospitable to wildlife.

Spinach grower Bob Martin has even poisoned ponds with copper sulfate to kill frogs that might get caught in harvesting machinery or carry salmonella on their webbed feet.

Produce buyers "got us by the short hairs," said Martin, one of few growers who would talk publicly about how he is protecting his crop.

But some officials have questioned whether such drastic measures are necessary based on limited evidence.

"We're trying to talk now with the companies, buyers, retailers, wholesalers to bring things back into balance," said Scott Horsfall, executive director of the Leafy Greens Handlers Marketing Board, which oversees new farming standards drawn up after the 2006 E. coli contamination. "There's a real pressure out there on growers that goes beyond what the science justifies."

Concern over contamination is most pronounced in the Salinas River Valley, where valuable farmland and sensitive wildlife have coexisted for centuries. The lush valley, described in John Steinbeck's "East of Eden" and nicknamed "America's Salad Bowl," grows 60 percent of the nation's lettuce.

The nonprofit Resource Conservation District of Monterey County, which works with landowners to sustain wildlife habitat, surveyed 181 leafy greens growers who manage more than 140,000 acres. The survey showed that more than 30,000 acres had been affected by trapping, poisoning, fencing or removal of natural habitat.

The survey also indicated that 32 percent of respondents were convinced by corporate food-safety auditors to remove non-crop vegetation. More than 47 percent had been asked to "remove" wildlife, and 40.7 percent of those surveyed complied.

Growers, packers and shippers adopted new food-safety standards last year for farms, including a requirement that farmers establish 30-foot buffers between their fields and grazing land for cattle, which are known carriers of E. coli.

The standards acknowledged that wildlife could also carry the bacteria, but they had no requirement for buffers between wildlife habitat and fields.

"I think there's a little brinksmanship going on," said Hank Giclas of Western Growers, who was part of the committee who wrote the standards. He worries that processors are exceeding the rules to gain a sales advantage without good science.

Going beyond the guidelines "without going through a review process is something companies have the right to do, but it would be better if they'd go through the program," he said.

Smaller growers argue that stricter guidelines aren't warranted for farmers growing fresh bunched greens. They say the problem is primarily with cut greens that are bagged, which allows bacteria to multiply if temperatures rise.

Industry representatives defend their above-and-beyond restrictions.

Fresh Express, with 41 percent of the bagged greens market, demands a mile between farm fields and feedlots for cattle instead of the agreement's recommended 400 feet. The company also requires that a field intruded on by a wild pig be kept idle for two years.

Barbara Hines, a spokeswoman for Fresh Express, which processes 40 million pounds of salad each month, said the company's tighter regulations are "generally valued" by its retail customers, which include grocers such as Safeway, Vons and Harris-Teeter.

Earthbound Farms also exceeds regulations in many areas, especially in seed and water testing and its one-mile requirement between farms and feedlots. But the company views fencing and removal of natural habitat as a counterintuitive last resort.

Habitat is what animals want. "If you remove it, they will go into the field," said Will Daniels, Earthbound's vice president of quality, food safety and organic integrity.

Fresh Express has funded a $2 million study into methods of potential E. coli transmission. Results are due next month.

The Western Institute for Food Safety and Security is conducting a separate study funded by the federal government. It plans to analyze carcasses and anal swabs from 7,000 birds, wild pigs, cattle and other animals collected by state officials. Hunters are being asked to turn in deer colons for the research.

Officials are also collecting 13,000 soil, water and plant samples in the hope that the study will rule out wildlife as risks and ease buyers' fears.

"We have two extraordinary resources in this area: wildlife and our agricultural community," said Terry Palmassno, a senior wildlife biologist at the California Department of Fish and Game. "It's our position that you don't need to destroy one in order to save the other, and that's what we're working on doing."

head ache

2008-08-28T20:45:00.002-04:00

I refinished the floor in the livingroom/dining room. I painted the exterior doors to the house, some trim associated with the doors and a side porch off the cut&wrap room. I have a head ache. I am not sure if it is a chemical sensitivity issue related to the house projects, or because I am allergic to a mold that is at it's peak in Aug-September in the north east region of the states. Our Dr.'s office has a fairly unorganized lady now and not only is she taking her time to get Dave his prescriptions (you know the kind that you have to pick up and they want you to call in, but you are either too early or too late to call it in...). She kinda didn't tell me the truth about getting it signed off on and I am still in pain. I hope she has a head ache tomorrow. Actually for three days like me, so she can develop a more caring personality. I liked the staff there last year. Way more professional than this new lot.

I have done squat for processing. Yoghurt and that is it. I have to work on fluid milk and feta tomorrow.

I will only make the Skaneateles f. market this week. State Fair week and I am not sure if this is worth my time, but it will have to do. My head hurts...

The boys from the milk delivery business in NYC tried to say that I did not give them all of the information regarding the sale of the farm and business and that I insulted them. Kinda funny considering the listing that they found it on said everything they thought I did not tell them and they were the ones to say they did not know anything about a dairy farm and needed assistance and resources to do this project right. I just sent them the links to be able to get a feasibility project done, like they asked. He basically parroted Dave and I on their plans... I don't care at this point. We are making money here and they can buy it at our price or get a farm in St. Lawrence county... I'll be nice because I truely want someone to succeed, but I am not giving anything away that I do not have to because they did not read or listen to what I had to say. It is not my fault and I know as much as they do that this is all about Union Square and the other Greenmarkets and that is it.

Dave finally admitted that cheese has done it's part in providing an on-farm income to me like our business plan stated. It has played a significant role in the over all farm profitability. It takes a lot to get him to admit that what I do is a contribution to the greater whole. From what I hear, it is not uncommon for male farmers to have this idea that the support system that farm wives give them means little compared to what they do. It is a sad deal and for some women a lonely deal. I've logged in 90+ hours a week on a common work week just like him. I may not do all of the milking, but I was the one to do dishes, laundry, shopping for school, homeschool Claire, make yoghurt, do sales calls, ring the Dr, pharmacy, grain companies regarding chick starter, arranged to get rid of whey, fed us and all of the farm help and mascots that came about. I have also started, done or finished chores while he gets hay in. I also do all of the organic and inspection paperwork, accounting, and other things...

I have a head ache and I think it is mold.

Thoughts on a Better Food Policy and our Health

2008-08-28T06:57:00.001-04:00

Ten points to better health
1. Know what you're eating. Find out where it comes from and what's in it. Think about what's in season now - what's ripe, not just fresh. A lot of these foods will turn out to be local.
2. Get cooking. And try making things from scratch. You'll save money and rediscover skills you forgot you had.
3. Plant something. It could be an herb pot on your kitchen counter or, if you have space at home, a small kitchen garden, or a communal plot in your neighborhood that you tend with family and friends. (The Victory Garden on Civic Center Plaza is a landscape of ideas, staffed by experts who can guide your hands to the soil.)
4. Pack a bag lunch.
5. Drink tap water. It's healthier for you, and it's free.
6. Learn about and celebrate the food traditions your family still possesses. These are like seeds, long stored and just waiting to be planted.
7. Invite someone to share a meal. Strengthen the bonds of friendship and community by cooking and eating together.
8. Learn about endangered foods and how we can bring them back to our tables.
9. Conserve, compost and recycle.
10. Vote with your fork.

Healthy Food and Agriculture Declaration, orchestrated by Roots of Change as a response to the farm bill
http://fooddeclaration.org/

Quark

2008-08-26T10:25:00.002-04:00

Quark is a fresh lactic cheese. Consumed in quantities in Germany, Holland and eastern Europe. I normally drain it in brick hoops, but I tried to make 3 batches of cheese last Tuesday and had to hang the Quark. Made a consistency like cream cheese. Quite lovely actually, but a little thicker.

Green Hills Farmers Market

2008-08-25T16:18:00.003-04:00

Here are some of the other vendors at Green Hills Farmers Market on S.Salina Street on Wednesdays 3-7 pm. I'm the one with cheese. I didn't take my own photo...

Inside Our Dairy Barn

2008-08-21T19:37:00.000-04:00

Argyle Cheese

2008-08-07T17:01:00.006-04:00

Dave and Marge Randles have a relatively new cheese business in Argyle, NY. Marge refers to me as her "Cheese Coach." I prefer "Goddess" or "Consultant" or "Cheese Technical Advisor"... Basically, I showed her how to make some of the cheeses they make and offer help when emergencies come about. Marge has a great support system in place to help as well. It makes a difference.

You can find her, her sister and her husband at Troy Riverfront Market, Saratoga and Glens Falls F. Markets. She also has an expanded farm store (which will be open soon, until then use old store).

Woohoo, more cheese makers in NY.

Emmer

2008-07-27T09:16:00.002-04:00

I went to this workshop Hosted by NOFA NY, Lightning Tree Farm and Wild Hive Farm. I get rather obsessed with biodiversity in livestock, but equally important in biodiversity in crops. We had this opportunity at the end to view the various test plots of the heritage wheats, ancient wheats and re-looked at commercial varieties from Canada. The one Elizabeth Dyck from NOFA-NY got pumped about was the Emmer. This is a Mid-East variety that has some real possibilities for organic production. It is not so input driven like the commercial varieties we have today. It is also probably one of the oldest wheat strains. Really pretty in this test field of about 1/4 acres of Emmer.

Beck from Aunt Bee's farm as also at the workshop as was Matt Grove from Bagel Grove (baker). It was good to see others in Central NY interested in this project.

Tim's Rooster

2008-07-25T17:45:00.002-04:00

Tim is the same guy that bought Peppermint Patti. Some day he will get to milking his goats and making cheese. He does our AI work and preg checks our cattle. Quite good at what he does. Claire likes to get her balloon rooster from Tim when he is done. Claire also has a stuffed rabbit names Road Kill.

We do have a therapy fund for her. We think she is smart enough to get into college with scholarships...

Micro dairy concept

2008-07-22T18:19:00.003-04:00

I think I like this Frank Kipe. I honestly don't know him well, but he is into the idea that a peron with 5 cows can make a living making and selling dairy products to their local community. I talked to him a bit yesterday about his filler, then mobile dairy system and basically about all of his ideas on this micro-dairy concept.

Seems like a sustainable concept and a viable concept for a community that is interested in keeping a farmer local. Apparently it costs about $12,000 plus a little for the equipment and is PMO (means meets federal regs). 100 people at $150 can buy and ship the equipment. Another small investment and the building goes around it... See where I am going? I think that this can be a sustainable community/farmer approach to supplying a local community with a local dairy product. All legal and on the up and up.

Consumers and food systems

2008-07-18T07:56:00.004-04:00

Went to a conference/workshop yesterday. It was about the food system in NY. Interesting. Did get to identify some interesting people and watch the same old same old go though their steps.

The biggest thing that came out of it for me was a comment from a Veg cooperative representative during the "supply side" break out. He was at a meeting of suits for a supermarket in New England. Apparently it costs $12,000 on average to take one refridgerated tractor trailer from CA to the northeast! That was an eye opener.

Shayla did the Clinton Farmers Market for me. I have her write down questions and comments from customers so I can address them in a timely manner. She got a doosy this time...

"I use to love cheese. Cheese used to love me. Thien I had a heart attack and Doc said no more saturated fats. It was the hardest thing I'd given up since sex..." She signed it creepy old man 7/17/08.

You get a lot of things at markets. It is humbling to understand the disconnect between consumers and farmers at times. The above one was funny, but some should be a study of consumer education about where their food comes from.

Meet Shayla

2008-07-15T21:22:00.003-04:00

Shayla is my intern/help for the summer. She is a local girl and learned about Camembert and Brie while in France for a learning immersion program at University. She just made her first batch of Camembert yesterday. She will be marketing for me at Clinton Farmer's Market on Thursday. She has been there for a few week and aside from me bothering her the last two weeks (not necessary), she has been there by herself.

I hope she keeps cheese making. We need more great cheesemakers with her wonderful drive and personality. We also love her smile!

This picture makes me remember that I really do need a new market tent.

Sissy the Chicken Keeping an Eye on Things

2008-07-15T18:39:00.002-04:00

Baby Goats are Way Cute

2008-07-15T18:33:00.003-04:00

Baby goats with Claire are out of Carmella. Born last night. The other two in the paddock are Phragmite's baby goats. She had them last week. Waaaaay cute. Claire wanted me to post their pictures.

Becoming a Slave to the Fresh Stuff

2008-07-15T07:36:00.002-04:00

A friend and cheese maker refered to fresh cheeses (goat in her case) as cocaine for the cheese maker. It is terribly addictive to turn on the steam boiler (in my case), heat it, cool it, make it, sell it, deposit the cash... The reason why I make cheese becomes second.

We make fresh mozzarella (my first cheese), quark (my second), labneh, yoghurt in 3 flavours, feta (when I get around to it) and my ultimate high dunlop curd.

I made raw milk gouda in kilo sized hoops yesterday. I had to. Dave was not back from MA yet. He had to go. He and Claire. I had to show Shayla how to make Camembert. I had to milk cows and do chores. I had to walk dogs. I had to feed chickens and mind goats... Gouda was a soul filling cheese. I needed to make it.

I am now behind and need to catch up on fresh product. Oh yah, and now this milk. I need to do yoghurt and fresh cream top milk. Sucks to make great cheese sometimes. People want it and I have to make it!!

I hope the parts and bits to the cave come in soon so that I can go into recovery and make the aged stuff again. I can see my work for a while before it is sold. Number in the bank balance don't help the soul, the product carefully turning on the shelf, waxed, washed... I can see it, feel it, smell it, watch it grow into a full potential. Not make it and pack it in the coolers and take the money...

Happy 4th July

2008-07-04T14:03:00.000-04:00

Rain rain go away come again when we are done with hay

2008-07-03T19:02:00.002-04:00

I think I've come upon a new rhyme. First a drought. That makes pastures consider going dorment. Then rain. Rain when we are suppose to be getting our hay off. We only lost 5-6 passed on the Phillips lot south of the farm. Dave plans to try to cut some more off tomorrow. I hope it works.

Our neighbor to the north better not start mowing. There is always this guy in a farming/rural community that no matter what year or weather conditions, the instant they mow a certain field, or in this guys case, mow... there is sure to be rain.

Marcia not well again. Between rain and concern over her health, he is going in circles fast. I am just tired, but in a good way. Cheesing is going well. Shayla, my new help is awsome! As an employer I am starting to understand the importance of mistakes being my lack of communication. . She is a natural!

Market Updates and all

2008-07-02T21:56:00.002-04:00

Green Hills and the Farmer's Market at Green Hills is picking up. I am seeing some of the same faces every week. We tried to stay an hour later, but only 1-2 customers were there for the last hour. I think we will petition to come home at 6pm. I also noted the happy conversations about people buying from Green Hills during the week when we are not there.

Tom's Natural Foods is also picking up. They are the only retail location where we will sell the 1/2 gal. fluid cream top milk. Reserve your jug with Bonnie or Tom. The milk is pasteurized to 145-148 degrees F. You can make any fresh cheeses, yoghurt or drink it. They also have most of our other cheeses.

Clinton Farmer's Market is a happy place. I have to admit it is one of my more favorite locations to market. It may be the Cannoli's that I can buy across from my stall, or the level of buying food locally education being better in that market area. A pleasant place to have conversations with customers.

Peter's Cornucopia is new to us and I have to do tastings to bring sales up. I am a little suprised that it did not pick up as fast, but I think I need to set aside some real time to do face time with customers. It has helped the Clinton people who frequent Tom's to learn more about what they are eating with positive results. I will talk to Peter about tastings tomorrow.

Hamilton Farmer's Market... My cheeses can be found at Aunt Bee's stall. Not this weekend as she is going to be at a Family Reunion and I desperately need to make more cheeses. I am FLYING through inventory and need to make cheese this weekend. Made a lovely batch of Dunlop on Easter (sold at Green Hills today). I still have my loyal customer base.

I will talk about some of the other market areas tomorrow. I think my "off switch" came on. I am tremendously tired. Will get Clinton ready in a.m. Shayla will do the market and I will make yoghurt. Funny thing is that I am borrowing a bread proofer that another local dairy who is not in business used to make sheep yoghurt.

What are these hoops?

2008-07-01T11:47:00.003-04:00

A fellow in Central NY bought a storage container full of these hoops. From Queensboro plant a number of years ago. He'd like to know what they are. There is this collar that slips up and it appears that there are these pins that hold the collar in place? The lid and bottom are removable and I am not sure if they push the collar down while pressing or if the followers are missing. Really neet hoop.

Any ideas?

IH 706 For Sale

2008-07-01T11:42:00.001-04:00

Dave is selling his beloved 706. Nice tractor. $4900.

Youth

2008-06-28T07:12:00.005-04:00

Claire wanted me to post this photo. It is staged. She IS feeding a calf. She poses for photographs now. Nothing candid anymore... Wait a minute, I do have a candid shot...

This is her getting milk out of the reciever jar to feed that calf. She was mad I took a picture of her back side. Couldn't pose there! She loves her calves.

Getting To Big To Fast?

2008-06-27T15:14:00.002-04:00

Are there suppose to be two "oo's" in "to" up above? My grammer is slipping as fast as my ability to spell. Can this be lack of sleep?

Yes. I made yoghurt until 1:20 a.m. the other day and until a customer rang, did not even know that some did not set well! The Labneh curd set, assume the rest did and put in cooler. One cooler did have ice blocks in it before so the temp must have dropped too fast. Crud. Tasted good, I just drank some being a cheap yankee, but I am trying to present our business as better quality than the other guy.

I think I expanded too fast and if it had not been for Shayla, I would be in bigger doodoo than I am now. I was smart enough to say, easy now for people interested in becomming new accounts. I need to keep up with who I am selling to now before I expand.

I am also selling aged wheels faster than I am making them. Took a forced day off today to remember who Dave and Claire were. Not bad people. Glad I live with them... Got energy efficient bulbs to replace the rest of the conventional ones. Bought groceries. Cleaned floor in house. Got shelving to replace reach in cooler I needed to fix (and used as a shelving unit).

All in all, we will be fine. I just need to make sure that I hunt down any other plain yoghurts that were cultured milk and replace. That and give extra cheese. I want them happy. I love my products and am frustrated that I sold an inferior product. Will always make right, but...

1/2 gal cream top milk

2008-06-23T20:53:00.003-04:00

Remember Hilltown Dairy? Well, we are bottling milk on a small scale again. Only the creamline, which we have to call Cream Top because there is another dairy that trade marked creamline. Oh well, same wonderful milk.

We sell it in the farm store on our farm and at Tom's Natural Foods in Clinton. For Clinton, we ask that you order it ahead of time. They have limited cooler space and would prefer people to order the milk to be dropped off on Thursdays just before the Clinton Farmers Market.

$3 for organic milk in 1/2 gal. jugs at the farm. Tom's does have a minor mark up. $4.25. Regardless, it is still less than conventional UHT orgo milk in the store.

Off to the movies

2008-06-22T17:56:00.002-04:00

Dave's first movie was Marry Poppins in the old Clavin Theater in Northampton. Mine was Benji in the old theater in Amherst. Claire's first was Kung fu Panda at the Hamilton Theater. She was SOOOOOOOOOO excited. Dave and I took her to Joe and Vinny;s for lunch and then a movie. The date cost us about $50, but the smile from Claire was worth it. We enjoyed the day off the farm.

Abel

2008-06-22T17:47:00.002-04:00

I believe in aliases. Abel also goes by:
Hound
Houndy
Abel Hound
Abel the Hound and
Brown Dog

There are some other names generally associated with his bad breath, "woofing up the cows" or teasing Joe that should not be repeated in public.

This is a photo of Abel in his other role as co-piolet in a road trip to MA to take Erin (sister) and family to Logan Airport to fly to Atlanta, GA. He was a bit shy about the camera.

Big Boy Toys

2008-06-22T15:34:00.004-04:00

Dave and Claire and working on the draingage system for the manure room. Smelly job, but with the rain, needed.

Spending Money

2008-06-11T14:08:00.002-04:00

Well, the rapairs to the boiler system are paid, now I can pay the rest of the initial system...and someone wanted to know who should work on designing and installing theirs... Let me just say, I don't think many are able to understand creamery needs. You need to understand creamery needs and then educate the handiest boiler guy near you. That our you will get hosed. Even the ones who say they know what they are doing are sketchy. Get the flow diagrams from the vat designer and builder and understand how A LOT of different people are installing their systems. Be SIMPLE. The more bells and whistles, the more toasted you will become when bad things happen.

The best farm refrigeration and 'bout any farm broken thing guy is Dick Barnes. He has a permanent parking spot here. Spending lots on him lately. Next is the small finish cooler (the one that melted the holiday cheeses last year). I will then take the florist cooler out and give it to Tim (Poplar Hedge) for aging his goat cheeses. This will also make the farmstand cooler which will keep my cave at a more sustainable (aka not toasting my newly installed compressor etc) system.

Press today and some more ad spots will let more people know about us. We should be in enough places now.

A great story about the importance of eating local

2008-06-10T15:38:00.000-04:00

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24994028/

Great Way to Learn Abour Low Carbon Eating

2008-06-09T21:29:00.001-04:00

This is a great link to learn about eating a low carbon meal. Interesting.

http://www.eatlowcarbon.org/#

It is always fun

2008-06-09T17:38:00.003-04:00

I should file as a non-profit this year. I'm spending money so fast that it is hard to keep up with it. Cave is not cooling well. Florist cooler has a hard time working at temps lower than 45 degrees F when it is 120 degrees F in the shop.

Maxine had a heifer. Woohoo. She also had a bull. Not so woohoo. Bull was also dead by the time we could get it out. We caught her a little after noon and brought her to the barn. The calf was dead (probably a while) and blocking the canal. All Dave felt were feet. It was a lot to get the calf around and pull it out. The heifer is fine.

Erin is not officially in GA. A lot to clean up at Mom's.

Marcia is not so good. Still in Cooley Dickenson. Probably until Thursday now. They are working on helping her with pain and some other bits. It is interesting how Dr.'s have a hard time dealing with pain management.

Shirley (Dave's aunt) was up. We like visiting with her. Got to see her yesterday after they went to church.

Hotter than heck out. Steam rising from the ground. Finally got some decent rain. At least a breeze was coming through the valley.

Had visitors out to the farm today. Will talk more about that later. Have to fly...

German Farmers are Doing the Right Thing, Can U.S. Farmers do the Same?

2008-06-09T09:22:00.000-04:00

Next Shortage: Ice Cream?
Supplies in Germany could melt away if dairy farmers continue their protest against low milk prices. Milk and cream are getting scarce

http://www.businessweek.com/globalbiz/content/jun2008/gb2008064_853863.htm

To write letter to Steven Chadwicks

2008-06-04T09:03:00.002-04:00

Write to this fellow. Help in efforts to save to Arapawa Goat from extinction.

Chadwick's address is:
schadwick@ministers.gov.nz

No Give from Government (NZ) on Arapawa Goats

2008-06-04T08:58:00.002-04:00

Gordon Copeland
Press Release For Immediate Release
Thursday 29th May 2008
No Give from Government on Arapawa Goats
Independent MP Gordon Copeland today expressed his deep disappointed that the Minister of Conservation has, once again, ruled out the possibility of the Arapawa goat herd being allowed to remain on conservation land. He was responding to a letter received this week from Minister, Steve Chadwick.

"This letter does not follow through on the tenor of the discussions which I held with the Minister on 9 April 2008," said Mr Copeland.

"At that stage the Minister indicated her willingness to work with the Minister of Agriculture Jim Anderton, who has a portfolio responsibility for rare breeds, with a view of developing a 'whole of Government'solution to the ongoing national and international controversy concerning the preservation of this unique breed of beautiful goats."

"The inflexibility now displayed by the Minister is simply incomprehensible. It is possible that the Arapawa goats have descended directly from a breeding pair left on the island by Captain James Cook.

They are therefore a beautiful part of New Zealand's natural history."In these circumstances I am baffled at the intransitence which has been shown by the Department of Conservation around this issue. Indeed I believe their attitude is actually contrary to the Conservation Act itself which defines 'conservation' as 'the preservation and protection of natural and historic resources for the purpose of maintaining their intrinsic values, providing for their appreciation and recreational enjoyment by the public, and safe guarding the options of future generations. ' ".

"They seem to disregard entirely the reality that this breed of goats is a natural and historic resource worthy of protecting and safe guarding for future generations. I find this attitude both arrogant and ignorant in the extreme.

"It is also deeply disappointing that the Minister has chosen to convey her decision to me in such blunt terms just eight days after the death of Betty Rowe who devoted some 30 years of her life to providing a sanctuary for these goats.

The simple fact of the matter is that there is plenty of room within the DoC estate on Arapawa Island both to safe guard this breed of goats for future generations and to preserve the biodiversity of the regenerating flora which, in any event, is completely fenced off from the grazing area of the goats."

ENDS

Gordon Copeland
Independent MP

New Accounts

2008-06-03T17:46:00.002-04:00

We are seasonal dairy farmers and cheese makers. Until we develop enough of a cave inventory, we are stuck with the need to wait until much of our herd has freshened and cheeses are aged. Often this means that money only comes the second half of the year. It is getting better, but sometimes it gets rough. That is why I do educational programs and consulting. Kinda makes the bridge between marketing seasons.

I am hoping that I can eliminate much of that extra non-farm producing income in 2009. I love watching others grow into cheese making, but I also want our business to become what it can be. The goal is to be at 10,000# cheese in 2010.

Every May/June begins the sales calls season. I start to ring old accounts and tell them of my availability of product. With last years umpfs (basically health problems in family since 2006) I am very grateful when I get orders. We make an excellent product, so it does sell itself to a great extent, but I do have to work hard to get a couple accounts back. My fault and I will remedy this shortly.

For the last few years, I have had a 95% reorder every year. This is pretty darn good. Two accounts on my website are not doing cheese this year, Cheese Shop at Wine Sense and Comistibles. I picked up four new accounts so far, so that is good. We have also tried a new approach towards Hamilton hoping that those people would come to the farm. A few things have made for creative challenges that I will have to overcome. I like a challenge.

So far, we will have product:

At the Farm Store on Center Road in Madison (look for sign)

Tom's Natural Foods in Clinton

Peter's Cornucopia in New Hartford

Deansboro Superette in Deansboro

Syracuse Real Food in Syracuse

Green Hills in Syracuse

Circa in Cazenovia

Clinton Farmer's Market in Clinton

After I come back from MA to get Erin and family to airport I will be working on following through on other accounts. If any ideas come to mind, I'd like a shout.

Looks good. Now I have to make a decision on an intern by tomorrow.

... and She's Off .....

2008-06-02T21:56:00.000-04:00

Growing Up

2008-05-31T21:11:00.002-04:00

This is the sculpture Claire made me for my birthday. She wants to be a sculptor when she grows up. Best present to date!

This is Claire after a shower the other night. She came down stairs in a pair of jeans. It is the first time in history that my little baby girl put on "big girl" pants that did not include sweats or tight like yoga pants (toddler ware) on her own initiative and liked the "look". She then proceeded to ask if she was a teenager yet. I told her she had at least 30 years!

"Belle the Rooster" is looking on. She is the rat terrier we rescued last year from Rat Bone Rescue. Pretty dog. Getting better in her manners. She and Claire and getting pretty darn close. That was the plan. I'm glad Belle is finally agreeing with us and enjoying Claire.

Birthdays

2008-05-31T17:46:00.003-04:00

My Birthday started with rain. Generally that would put someone off, but we need rain. It made me dream of hay and potatoes. You know, those things that involve rain...

I also woke up with a cold. Becky rang though to say she'd be late, so that made the morning better. I rolled over and took an extra 20 minutes of sleep.

The Farmer's Market is still slow. Way slower than last year. I'm not tasting in the market. I tried a different strategy. That is not working, so I decided to do the whole dairy CSA thing. Put a piece in the Mid York about it. Our Meat CSA went over very well in MA. We make a great product. Should make things convenient and introduce people to more of our products.

I am in at Clinton Farmer's Market. That will be nice. Also will have product at Tom's in Clinton and Peter's in New Hartford. Starting at Green Hills next week and expanding product at Syracuse Real Food.

Dave, Claire and I went up to see Lawreance and his new baler. Dave was trying to help him get the knotter working. I forked hay into the pick up teeth while they worked on it. Got it to kinda work. Need to get some more rust off another part. Looks like it may work pretty good.

Got to see a handsome milking Devon bull calf. Looks like he will be a powerful ox.

Have Lawrence's mug and post cards for his CafePress site. It promotes the milking Devon breed. I like to support things like that. Also Old Goat Salsa's and Sauces. Will work on other products from local artists and farmers. Ginger's Hot Sauces and jams/jellies are a favorite as well.

House work and press realeased for tomorrow's agenda.

Directions to our Farm

2008-05-29T11:05:00.001-04:00

Donations to Arapawa Trust

2008-05-29T08:35:00.002-04:00

The Arapawa Wildlife Trust is in need of donations. This will help preserve the goats, sheep and pigs (and any other wildlife on the island). They can take any currency.

Permanent address for those wanting to donate will be
C/- Mitch & I at:
Arapawa Wildlife Trust
C/- "Aotea"Private
414East BayPicton
7250 New Zealand

The World According to Monsanto

2008-05-28T19:53:00.001-04:00

"The World According to Monsanto"
http://wideeyecinema.com/?p=105
On March 11 a new documentary was aired on French television (ARTE – French-German cultural tv channel) by French journalist and film maker Marie-Monique Robin, The World According to Monsanto - A documentary that Americans won’t ever see. The gigantic biotech corporation Monsanto is threatening to destroy the agricultural biodiversity which has served mankind for thousands of years.

You should also see...
"Patent for a Pig"
http://underdogcinema.com/politics/patent-for-a-pig-the-big-business-of-monsanto/

Some US Farms Outsourced to Mexico

2008-05-27T20:21:00.002-04:00

Some US farms outsourced to Mexico
By JESSICA BERNSTEINWAX
Associated Press Writer
AP - Tuesday, May 27
IRAPUATO, Mexico -
Antonio Martinez used to pay smugglers thousands ofdollars each year to sneak him into the United States to manage farmcrews. Now, the work comes to him. Supervising lettuce pickers in central Mexico, Martinez earns just half of the $1,100 a week he made in the U.S. But the job has its advantages, including working without fear of immigration raids. Martinez, now a legal employee of U.S.-owned VegPacker de Mexico, is exactly the kind of worker more American farm companies are seeking. Many have moved their fields to Mexico, where they can find qualified people, often with U.S. experience, who can't be deported." Because I never moved my family to the U.S., I was always alone there," said Martinez, 45, who could never get a work permit, even after 16 years in agriculture in California and Arizona. "When I got the opportunity to be close to my family, doing similar work, I didn't even have to think about it."American companies now farm more than 45,000 acres of land in three Mexican states, employing about 11,000 people, a 2007 survey by the U.S. farm group Western Growers shows. There were no earlier studies to document how much the acreage has grown. But U.S. direct investment in Mexican agriculture, which includes both American companies moving their operations to Mexico and setting up Mexican partnerships, has swelled sevenfold to $60 millionsince 2000, Mexico's Economy Department told The Associated Press. Major corporations such as Archer Daniels Midland Co. and Bunge have invested across Latin America for decades, particularly in countries like Brazil, where agribusiness is booming. Some small farmers have cultivated parts of Mexico for much longer, seeking to secure year-round supplies of fruits and vegetables, while taking advantage of cheap labor and proximity to the U.S. But the latest move south has been fueled by something new, farmers say: a way to continue to deliver cheap, fresh farm goods amid the current U.S. political standoff over an estimated 12 million undocumented immigrants, the majority from Mexico. Recent Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids have targeted major agricultural producers, including Del Monte Fresh Produce in Portland,Oregon, and several large packing plants across the nation _ scaring away immigrants and persuading many agricultural employers to clean up their hiring practices." Employers can't find legal workers to replace this huge number of illegal workers," said James Holt, an agricultural labor economist and independent consultant based in Washington. "Their only option is to go where the workers are." Many of the growers, once based in California's Salinas Valley, are also heading south to escape high land prices and water shortages. Mexico is closer to eastern U.S. markets than California, they say. Shipping times to Atlanta are a day shorter from Mexico's central Guanajuato state. Not everyone in Mexico has welcomed U.S. companies. Mexican farmers complain that they have driven up land rental prices. Many local growers worry they can't compete against big, foreign firms, said Felipe Sanchez, president of a farmers group in Guanajuato state." How can a ranch that farms 70 acres compete with a company that cameto farm 10,000 acres?" Sanchez said. " We'll become laborers on our ownranches." Farm workers at U.S. companies in Mexico make two or three time sMexico's minimum wage of $4.80 a day. But they still earn far less than the average $9.60 an hour that field workers in the United States made in January 2008, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Juan Antonio Linarez, 19, makes a tenth of his U.S. roofing income at Taylor Farms de Mexico's vegetable cooling plant in Guanajuato. But he has health insurance and can live nearby with his family _ without the dangerous and expensive trek across the border. Some experts argue that farmers simply refuse to raise U.S. wages to compete with other industries, something they say would help ease the labor crunch. As the United States heads into a recession, more native-born workers might consider agricultural work if wages were high enough, said Harley Shaiken, director of the University of California at Berkeley's Center for Latin American Studies." Labor shortage always is a question of at what pay rate," Shaiken said. "Very often, if the wages are artificially low, it will be very difficult to find a work force." But Steve Scaroni said he did offer higher wages and still couldn't find a steady work force in the U.S. Scaroni owns VegPacker, a California and Guanajuato-based company that grows lettuce, celery, cauliflower and other vegetables. VegPacker has struggled after forking out millions of dollars to launch its Mexico division two years ago. The problem is that cheaper labor in Mexico often is offset by lower productivity and high training costs, especially when it comes to enforcing U.S. food-safety standards."The only thing that's cheaper down here is diesel fuel and the labor per day," Scaroni said. "My productivity is down 40 percent" from U.S. levels.

News from Arapawa

2008-05-27T08:59:00.002-04:00

News from Debbie:-
Hi Christine
This is Debbie, Mitch's wife - thought I could answer a few questions: But first, We as a family admire Mom so much - her passion for her cause (whether you agreed or not), her intelligence, her love of us / our children (whom we bought up on the Island) / our grandchildren (whom we made sure spent time on the Island with her) she was our matriarch ...still, there is a part of us that has thoughts along the lines thatif the 'cause' had not demanded so much of her, we as a family, may havebeen blessed with her in our life for another decade or more.

But - onward as we must: Currently Shannon is and has been on the sanctuary. We have one new kid and other nanny's are due to birth shortly. Betty had already made arrangements for the 'home goats' to be re-located to others who will be able to care for them on a daily basis in the same way that they are used to. The other semi-wild ones, that come and go as they please will continue to do just that, with their home range being the sanctuary - in this they are creatures of habit and I don't expect they will stray.

First priority is to get through the kidding and grow the kids on a bitbefore the transfer. Transfer will be some 3-3.5 hours by sea, then 3-4hours by road so we want them strong and healthy from the start. Trustees are Betty and Shannon - going through the process of appointing another Trustee/s - will keep you informed. The Trusts function is 'to provide a wildlife sanctuary in perpetuity'for the Arapawa goats, sheep and pigs and possibly other endangered species. It is an educational resource for school visits and will continue to be so as well as remaining accessible to the public and any scientific studiesthat will further help to establish them as a species in need of protection.

With some of the latest info Betty has received (ex Spain) and backing both at National (Gordon Copeland / Simon Reeves / Bob Kerridge - to name a few) & International level, we are aware that there is still much work to bedone. This research and support may indeed be the catalyst for the'protection and recognition' outcome we desire. Yes to continued involvement with G-UK & IAGA - DoC needs to be challenged at the govt level as this is the only level that can effect change.

Donations - will be used to promote all of the above and also in the longer term to develop strategies re: funding for fencing, maybe accommodation, maybe a retainer for a caretaker. Ideas are all wide open at the moment andat the end of the day any furtherment will require $$ or it may be that the animals will just 'be there' as they already have and are.

The Trust currently has a very limited pool of funds, some of which will need to be expended through; the translocation of the 'home goats' /immediate costs through the kidding season / drenching etc. The legal side will take some of six months before clear mandate. Mitch got posting rates from here. Probably missed something, but let me know.

Regards Debbie

Good morning Sure Christine, you can share this email. For the meantime, communicate with me, Shannon / Betty's mail box is jammed- trying to download 1200 odd messages. I speak with her daily so keep her informed of goings on. Shannon will stay on the island till end of June. Mitch & I are usually home on the island Fri-Sun. There has been great support from people who live or work in East Bay to keep an eye on things while in the area, even DoC has volunteered to check out boats near the sanctuary to stop poaching. Unfortunately the animals are eagerly sort by trophy hunters. Please extend our thanks to all for their prayers and good wishes over thesepast weeks. ThanksDebbie

Appreciate What You Have

2008-05-26T09:40:00.002-04:00

What else can I use at the title? We were told about a farm to rent. Kinda an on again off again possibility for a farm to rent. It opened up and it looked like a viable opportunity. Well, it wasn't as cut and dry as that.

The free stall was kinda new relative to many of the barns we have looked at. It had been rented however. Tenents often don't give two s**** when renting a facility and there were clear wear and tear issues. The owner made it clear that we as tenents would be responsible for not only all repairs, but would have to pay the guy back for repairs he had done! Weigh jars I could understand, but the PVC pipe to fix the vacuum?

OK. If he was a reasonable sort, that can work... Just keep a detailed record of our repairs for the next guy...

Barn was $500/month. Ok. That comes with minimal pasture and the fellow across the street (who everyone likes a lot) would rent out pastures there. Then hay. We offered $30/acre or add on another $100/month for lease of land.

The deal killer, however, was the electric bill. Apparently we would have to not only pay the electric on the barns (reasonable as we are using them), we'd have to pay for them for their house and out sheds for their beef too! I am not naive enough to assume that it only costs $80/month or less to run electricity through a farm house... And why are we paying more in rent monthly for that anyways?

Contemplation as we go out into the pastures a little. Pig weed. The lad had been cleared of debris and I admit you can see that a lot of work had been done to improve the ambience of the farm. There wasn't the extreme clutter that is common on a lot of these "used farms". Cattle had grazed in a semi continuous system on the remaining pastures. Kinda spent considering the lack of rain. The counter from the to be land lord was $700/month if we used the whole farm. He liked what we do, but I guess that is a priveledge of his electric bills, improving his farm infrastructure and getting him a discount on taxes (ag assessment).

We are not that desperate to move. Well I am not. Dave is in a minor state of depression again. I suggested a realistic counter-offer to see if he would be interested in a viable farm business in the place, but Dave figures he would not be interested in this at all.

We then looked at one of the more realistic farms. In Fort Edward. The house and barns are on Rte 4. It would be interesting, but again we would have to eliminate the reduction of debt part of our considerations for moving. I'm ok with that as it is a great direct marketing location and I think that we could remove debt faster as I willnot have to marekt and distribute product so far from the farm. I think Dave realized I was right and this didn't set well.

We got home about 11pm. Belle was still outside. Joe on the poarch. (Abel was with us). We woke up in various states of recovery from such a long trip. One cow had a sore from foot. Claire woke with a cold. Joe had to get me up at 3am or so to go out. Dave didn;t get to sleep until 1:30am. I felt like I had a hang over (and haven't had a drink in ages...). I also woke up late.

It is a beautiful morning. Our farm looks pretty damn good compared to a lot of these places we have seen since January. I am ok with staying. We have done a pretty damn good job. I think we definetly listed our place at the right price the first time. You cannot find a place in better shape out there to do this kind of farming. Not in VT, NH, NY or MA. Not for less! I think we are ok with staying. I think we are ok with not taking less than what it is worth.

Now to start the haying season...

It's Not Just the U.S.

2008-05-25T06:50:00.000-04:00

Dairy farmers press supermarkets for deals that will secure supply
Published Date: 25 April 2008
By Dan Buglass
THE relationship between farmers and supermarkets has been fractious at best in recent years. The multiples have made repeated pledges of loyalty to farmersuppliers. Producers, on the other hand, feel that they have been relentlessly squeezed while the big players post increasing profits. The media at large has in recent weeks highlighted the fact thatinflation in the food sector is resulting in considerable pain to theweekly budget of the average consumer. Not so, according to the UK government's Office for National Statistics: the most recent data shows that food in real terms is almost 20 per cent cheaper than 30 years ago.That is why, according to many former dairy farmers, they have soldoff their cows and reorganised their businesses. The end result isthat the surviving milk producers for the foreseeable future will fall well short of matching the EU quota of 14 billion litres they are entitled to sell each year without a penalty for being in excess. Earlier this week Morrisons was cleared by the Office of Fair Trading, in respect of allegations surrounding price fixing, many of which related to the dairy sector. That verdict cost the OFT £100,000.Jim McLaren, the president of NFU Scotland who runs a dairy farm near Crieff, believes the time has come for the multiples to lock into secure contracts that will be of mutual benefit. He said: "Now that the weight of price-fixing allegations has largely been lifted from the shoulder of Morrisons, they can get on with the job of formalising arrangements with milk producers to secure its supplies of liquid milk in the future." All the major competitors – Tesco, Sainsbury, Waitrose, Marks &Spencer – have entered into varying agreements with dairy farmers. We have been in discussion with Morrisons over the last ten days and stressed that point and hope for an early announcement that will give everyone a degree of security." Tesco is certainly on the front foot with the announcement yesterdaythat the 147 direct suppliers in Scotland contracted through Robert Wiseman Dairies will receive a significant increase in their milk cheques at the end of this month. Those producers, who are part of the £25 million Tesco Sustainable Dairy Group (TSDG), established in July 2007, will now be paid 28p for every litre of milk that ends up on the UK's leading supermarket chain's shelves. That will take these selected dairy farmers very close to the top of the UK milk price league. Sarah Mackie, senior buying manager for Tesco in Scotland, said: "We look forward to building closer relationships with the farmers who supply us with milk, and working with them in the future."Dairy farmers in Scotland, in common with their colleagues throughout the UK, have been near to total despair in recent years. Jim Watt of Benthall Farm, near East Kilbride, was close to packing in, but he is now happy with the new arrangement with Wiseman and Tesco. He said: "Just over a year ago I was making plans to sell the herd andcut my losses. Joining the Tesco milk pool proved to be a turning point and gave an opportunity to invest for the future."A new milking parlour is being installed and I plan to grow the herd from around 90 cows to 120 cows in the months ahead." My son has decided to come back to the farm and we are genuinely looking forward to the future with a lot of optimism as a result ofthe new contract."However, life does not appear so bright for those dairy farmers who trade with Wiseman, but are not part of the Tesco deal: the new terms could cost them money, according to Ian Potter, a widely respected dairy analyst.He said: "In a shock move one of the UK's most straightforward and transparent milk buyers, Robert Wiseman, is to change the notice period for non-Tesco buyers in an attempt to halt the threat of sudden losses of milk supplies."Under the new contracts the three-month notice of severance will onlybe operational from the first day of the month, but that has much wider implications, according to Potter.He said: "At first sight it may not seem like big news, but the contracts warrant further examination. It translates into the fact that any producer who has not served notice before 31 May 2008 may not be able to leave before 1 December. Milk will be scarce in the autumn and the big players will still have to meet their obligations."The perceived 'white knights' of the UK dairy industry are worried about quitting existing contracts for higher prices at a time when milk will be short. That tells a big story. Farmers should stand firm."

Visitors

2008-05-24T20:02:00.002-04:00

I probably am not suppose to put a picture of Marcia into the public realm, but I could not resist. Here she is with Cliare in my getting ever clutterier kitchen.

Here is Ken helping Dave fix tedder. I didn't get the pictures of taping walls or helping us pull well.

Weekends! This was the last one. After making 68-70 gal. of yoghurt and Labneh... I'd love to sleep in, but looks like a road trip is in store for tomorrow...

Bumper Cars

2008-05-22T20:19:00.002-04:00

Marketing and sales are like riding bumper cars at the local county fair. You all get into the little cars in a spirit of fun and exhuberance. You start by waving at eachother and smiling as you go by. Eventually those that are more agressive start to wack into everyone with as much gusto and determination. Smiles and waves turn into concern and strategic maneuvering...

To make the best of the situation, you laugh at those that bump you the hardest. Compliment their efforts and redouble on the far side to get a hell of a side wallup when they are focusing their efforts on someone else (see they think you are out of the picture)...

I like the carnival aspect of things. I've done the distribution of "local farm products", sold trailer loads of lambs and goats into ethnic markets, assisted husband on bottling milk in MA, make and sell cheese... I prefer this lifestyle to working a mundane politics driven office. I am too cynical and stubborn to get along with 8-4:30ers. Maybe a wee excentric to boot (at least the CNY versions of office co-workers think I am... I think they are right. Why be boring?)

We got our AWSOME sign from Terry Signs (824-3144). Combine that with Dick Barnes getting the again cooling system going and our farm store is actually going to be OPEN FOR BUSINESS.

As expected the Amish cheese at Hamilton Market did cut into the Hamilton sales. At least I didn't pay for the curb space. We will try marketing through the Peppermill and Aunt Bee's Farm to see how it goes. It is kinda why we decided to market yoghurt and milk from our organic cows. Gotta be flexible. Dan's tomme is good, others pretty good. Everyone who markets cheese in the area suggested he be competitive (raise his prices to be with us), but it is his business.

The beauty of small scale direct marketing is that we can all be flexible. I'll just put pasteurized product into that area and keep my quality as good as it always is. I'll keep the customers that like what we do. Fair enough.

On the flip side we will be bouncing someone out of another account with our new 2008 products. It evens out. When you are marketing, you can bitch and moan to family only and for a total of 4 hours. Then get over it and come up with a different approach. Keep the quality excellent and you will persevere.

Arapawa Island Goats

2008-05-20T16:53:00.003-04:00

First picture has our buck "George". Carmella and Peach are to the left and Karo to the back. I am not sure if it is Pandi to his right or not. Next picture is Karo with Patti goat. Bottom is the Peach, Carmella and Phragmities group.

The hay feeder is up side down behind Phrag and her group. That is where Peach and Carmella sleep.

Arapawa Wildlife lost a great soul

2008-05-20T10:02:00.000-04:00

Goat champion Betty dies after stroke
The Marlborough Express Monday, 19 May 2008
One of the Marlborough Sounds most enduring and high profile people, BettyRowe,
died in Fairview Hospital, Blenheim, early yesterday morning, aged 76.

Mrs Rowe, who originally came to the Sounds from the United States with her late husband Walt, spent 30 years fighting for the preservation of ArapawaIsland's goats. Mrs Rowe
suffered a stroke on Anzac Day and family and friends knew at thattime the animal advocate was unlikely to return to her East Bay home thatmeant so much to her.

She fought long and hard to protect the Arapawa goats from shooters sent by the former New Zealand Forest Service and more recently the Department ofConservation. Mrs Rowe and rare breed societies worldwide believed theanimals to be descended from old English goats released on the island byCaptain Cook in 1773. But the authorities have sent in shooters over the years to cull the goats to protect a scenic reserve containing important Cook Strait forest and plant species. Mrs Rowe set up a sanctuary in East Bay for the goats.

Mrs Rowe is survived by her daughter Mary, sons Mitch and Roy, nine grandchildren and 12 great grandchildren. A funeral will be held at Nativity Church in Blenheim on Thursday at 1.30pm.

http://www.stuff. co.nz/marlboroug hexpress/ 4553660a6008. html

The Dairy Plant

2008-05-19T15:07:00.004-04:00

Calling my little art space a "plant" always seems funny to me. The "Dairy Plant" is only a 13'6" x 14'2" room. It is a portion of the milk house and is one of two buildings that house this cheese business. The second is the new aging/store building I noted earlier.

I love my little space. The photo here is right after processing, just after hooping and just before scrubbing. It is set up for doing raw milk cheeses. Note I use the thermometer from the recorder to note temp, but the lids and all are not on.

The piping on the wall may be more elaborate than they need to be. Basically, it is set up to heat the vat with steam for pasteurizing, hot water for raw milk, use cold water when needed and has another port for attaching another cooling water system. That will be important for full batches of yoghurt or other hot milk cooking products.

I didn't spend much at a time, but it is adding up. The only things I'd do differently are adding a vent/air system and doing something a little different about the drains as the mice like to come through and I have to add a screen to the top when cheeses are in the plant.

I like small plants. They seem inviting, like a school art room or a clay studio in the back of the house. Larger plants always mean business. Cash flow and covering debt. I like to make cheese because I make cheese, not because of a looming loan payment. (I do make cheese for that reason, but that debt is not as large as some). Dave and I hope to eliminate that debt component so that the plant and his barn are inviting places, just because we enjoy our way of life, not because of the mounting and declining bills on the desk.

Dairy Farmers of America

2008-05-19T15:03:00.000-04:00

May 18, 2008
The Feed

Yes, It's a Cooperative. But for Whom?
By ANDREW MARTIN

THE traditional idea of agricultural cooperatives is that farmers have more muscle to negotiate prices when they band together.

At the nation's largest dairy cooperative, the Dairy Farmers of America, it hasn't always worked that way. The group's executives have often seemed more concerned about pleasing dairy executives than their members, this during a time of brutal consolidation in the industry.

The cooperative, created in 1998 from the merger of four others, generates $11 billion in sales. Because it is so big, some dairy farmers have felt compelled to join, only to find that they were paid less than before for their raw milk.

D.F.A. executives didn't suffer such hardships, traveling the country in a corporate jet and making deals that appeared to benefit a few in the industry; some members complained that they were largely left in the dark about how the money from the deals was spent.
Wait, aren't the farmers supposed to own the cooperative?

Now, we come to hear that the Dairy Farmers' former chief executive, a larger-than-life figure named Gary E. Hanman, transferred $1 million in 2001 to the board chairman at the time, Herman Brubaker, for reasons that remain a mystery.

The payment was disclosed by the current president and chief executive, Richard P. Smith, during a recent press conference with dairy trade publications. Mr. Smith described the payment as "an improper transaction" that had been concealed.

The cooperative has since recovered the money with interest, said Mr. Smith, who in 2006 replaced Mr. Hanman, who retired. Mr. Smith said he believed that both Mr. Brubaker and Mr. Hanman had chipped in to cover the payment. "It was a breach of trust," Mr. Smith said in an interview. "I do believe it was an aberration."

Asked what the payment was for, Mr. Smith said: "We don't know. I'd rather not speculate. Certainly there is no valid reason."

Neither Mr. Hanman nor Mr. Brubaker, who retired in 2003, were available for comment.
This might seem like a dispute that would be confined to states like California and Wisconsin, where there are plenty of dairy farms. But it has implications well beyond dairy states.

Mr. Hanman was among the most powerful people in the dairy industry at a time of monumental change.

In the last decade, the number of dairy farmers has declined sharply — from about 99,000 in 1997 to about 59,000 last year, according to the Agriculture Department. At the same time, there has been a major shift in where milk is produced.

Small dairy farmers east of the Mississippi River and in the Upper Midwest are increasingly being replaced by huge dairy farms in the West, in places like New Mexico and western Texas. Few dairy farms are even left in the Southeast.

These days, more milk is trucked halfway across the country because the local dairy farmer and milk bottler are out of business. All of this change was done in the name of efficiency — and may have made sense when gasoline was $2.50 a gallon. But if you have bought milk any time in the last year, you know that consumers aren't benefiting from the new dairy landscape.

Mr. Hanman was in an ideal position to help dairy farmers deal with the shifting winds. But if anything, he seemed to have made the situation worse.

A large man with thinning red hair who favored bright red suspenders, Mr. Hanman aggressively expanded his cooperative and his influence by outmaneuvering competitors, rewarding his allies and giving campaign contributions to politicians who were in a position to help him.

To expand the cooperative, Mr. Hanman used a strategy that gave dairy farmers little choice but to join and, in the process, helped push competing cooperatives out of business. (In some instances, they merged with the Dairy Farmers of America.)

The D.F.A. would sign exclusive supply agreements with milk bottlers or buy the bottling plants outright, often in areas where it had few if any members.

The dairy farmers who supplied the plant could then either join the cooperative or find somewhere else to sell milk. In a time of rapid consolidation, there often weren't any other plants within a reasonable distance.

In some parts of the country, including the Northeast and areas of the South, three out of four dairy farmers now sell their milk through the Dairy Farmers of America or one of its affiliates. Some farmers have complained that the money they were paid for their milk declined when they started selling it through the D.F.A. or its subsidiaries.

Questions about where farmers' money was going intensified when court documents filed by the Justice Department a few years ago revealed that some of the Dairy Farmers' business partners were making extraordinary profits.

For instance, Robert Allen, a dairy executive, participated in a joint venture in the Northeast and made $21.7 million profit on a $1 million investment. Another dairy executive, Allen Meyer, had a joint venture with the D.F.A. in Kentucky and Tennessee: he turned an investment of several hundred thousand dollars into a gain of $70 million.

Neither Mr. Allen nor Mr. Meyer could be located for comment.

D.F.A. officials say the cooperative made the same return on those investments as Mr. Allen and Mr. Meyer.

But Peter Hardin, editor and publisher of The Milkweed, a newsletter that has long been critical of Mr. Hanman, remains skeptical. "Outside business partners seemed to walk away with sweet deals, and the farmers were left with the crumbs," he said. "The money went anywhere but to the farmer."

MR. SMITH said that "some combination of lack of transparency and arrogance" existed in the old days at the D.F.A., and he has vowed to change the culture. For one thing, he got rid of the corporate jet.

He has also promised a thorough and transparent investigation of the cooperative's finances to ensure that there weren't any other unexplained payments. The farmers who lost their dairies during the last decade deserve at least that much.

Better yet, perhaps the Justice Department, which began an investigation of the Dairy Farmers of America about four years ago, will finally let them know if it found anything more than an aberration.

A Justice Department spokeswoman declined to comment.

No day is the same...

2008-05-18T18:00:00.003-04:00

My mother-in law often says that she likes coming to our farm because "no day is ever the same...there are always so many things going on...I'm never bored..." Some days I long for that boring suburban existance watching t.v. or shopping. I get over it quick though, but I can never actually plan things.

I should have been in VT looking at two M. Devons. Water problems and lack of electricity on Friday ended those plans.

Plan B.

Yesterday, Dave went to help Lawrence move two hay elevators. He was gone until 3:30pm. Not their fault, but we were suppose to get a screen door at the hardware store and deal with the lack of water on the farm. Lawrence got hurt, so that humbled me and I could not be angry at Dave anymore.

We did have to replace the well pump. Learned about well pumps and also learned that our well is only about 70'. Problem was that it cost us another pump and we had to call Dick out again. He is starting to make weekly calls to the farm. Kinda expensive visitor. He will be here Wednesday to install aging cooling system. $$$

Calves are eating well. Twins on Thursday. They look nothing alike. We were able to move the close up heifers. It was nice to see the bags filling up. Lotsa lotsa cheese in a couple weeks!!!

Thinking about Farmers markets again. A wee conserned about having to mind husband and being allowed the time to market. Hopefully the farmstore can replace one of them and I will only have to do 2 instead of 3.

Have to run out and help with calf chores.

Peppermint Patti goes to Poplar Hedge

2008-05-14T13:10:00.003-04:00

Dave Nackley bought the sheep. Becky, his wife, somehow got me to agree to trade one of the lambs for a goat. An Alpine. My little feral goats took offence to this trade. Sheep were tollerable enough, but a dairy goat 4 X their size! Horrors!

Patti goat was sweet, so I rang Tim who loves Alpines. Tim is getting a goat dairy together in West Winfield, NY. He will be milking and making cheese this summer. We have been helping him and he has loaned me the recording thermometer and manual read ones to make pasteurized products.

In the pictures above, Dave is one the right considering taking the money. Tim is on the left looking nervous having a photo taken of him.

Patti is in the other photo in the back of the Subaru.

Archie

2008-05-14T12:51:00.003-04:00

He'll have a proper name, but his barn name is "Archie". Right now, Moose is out to pasture and we kept him in the calving pen while we move things around. We will probably graft another calf on Moose as well and it is easier to keep the calves in the pen for a couple of weeks before they go to pasture. Moose grazes with the dairy herd and comes in the feed her baby two times a day.

Why not milk Moose? We tried. We eventually came to an understanding. She raised a beautiful veal calf last year as well as Mini Moose (
Ultra Miss). We just handle her so much. She does like her curry in the winter when the hair is shedding, but just don't go near the udder. We can deal wtih that.

It's a Boy!

2008-05-13T20:59:00.005-04:00

Moose had a boy. Figures, everyone else has heifers out of this bull.... Me, a bull. Cute. Dave nick named him "Archie".

Dave was body slammed by Moose as he carried her calf to the pen. She charged me when I checked on her out in the pasture. Moose is actually Plimoth Plantation Panzy. She was kicked out of Plimoth Plantation because she broke John Truelson's ankle. We have an understanding of sorts. She is not a beginner cow!

She is the only cow to give me heifers. The first one "Damson" is at Plimoth Plantation. The second is "Ultra Miss". As her name suggests, she was missed in an ultra sound and Moose was almost shipped. Good thing she started bagging up!

I will take a photo of her and her calf tomorrow. One more Kerry cow in the world! Woohoo... Too bad it wasn't a heifer. Yet, it is the only bull with Irish semen in the U.S..

Waxing cheeses

2008-05-13T14:54:00.003-04:00

It is funny how I tend to talk to some people on the phone while I am waxing cheeses. Was working on that for the better part of the morning today. Clear wax. A great way to eliminate the smell of garlic in some of these experimental "flavored" cheeses.

I am a great fan of simple, unadulterated cheese. I seem to feel this pressure to "flavor" my cheeses. Not so sure how this experiment will go. Most seem to come up garlic. Sundried tomato and garlic, garlic and garlic and herbs... Garlic and cheese go well together. I anhaving a time of it deciding how much garlic however...

We use a double aluminum pan method. Take two pans suitable for Thanksgiving turkey. Melt wax in the upper pan. Use the lower pan as a sort of protective layer. Some pans are deeper than others.

Use care in waxing. You need to get all of the cheese covered. No pin holes. Each type and color has a temp it likes to be at. Again NO PIN HOLES. This is trickier with beeswax.

I have dropped a wheel in the wax. EVERYTHING gets covered with wax. Be careful.

Never walk away from wax. It can combust. Use the lowest setting you can and use those thermometers.

The Farm Store

2008-05-12T21:56:00.004-04:00

This is the farm store building. Nothing fancy, just practical. In the back half, I will be aging my cheeses.

I still have to paint it and put up the trim, but I plan to do most of that out of cash flow. I also want to put pea stone in the drive way in front of the building and landscape it a bit.

We had to take down an ugly 3-Bay garage that wa shalf-falling in to do this building. It is 18' x 18'.

I have cheeses in the florist cooler that have to be moved to the back. I also have to get the sign. I think that comes this week. Once that comes... Open!!!!

Our House and Pole Barn

2008-05-12T21:34:00.004-04:00

This is our humble house. It is a typical farmhouse in the area. Built in the mid 1800's (~1847-1852). We have 3-bedrooms upstairs with a generous landing area. It has aluminum siding and a roof that the Stone's put on in 2000.

This is our "pole sheed". Otherwise known as equipment/hay storageand sheep winter quarters. The chicken shed is to the left of the building. You can also see our "Kitchen Art" near the house. I'll talk more about that later. There is a hop plant growing at the base.

This farm was a hop farm in its earliest days. There were also apple trees. I saw them in the 1938 air photos at the District office.

More cows

2008-05-11T15:12:00.003-04:00

A first calf heifer and a mature cow. Both Ayrshires. Grazing the field behind the barn. We use to dock tails to keep the cows cleaner, but do not now. Organic standards and a change in attitude.

Snow White

2008-05-11T13:23:00.004-04:00

Starbuck II had a white calf with red ears. Kinda like the ancient Celtic cows that they use to sacrifice to the Gods. This is our first of two almost white Ayrshire calves out of this Nicholas bull.

Two of our spring ayrshire calves

2008-05-10T17:18:00.002-04:00

Sheep and Technology

2008-05-10T17:07:00.002-04:00

Ok. Sheep are probably the only animal on a farm that is in total equilibrium with the world. They offer me a sort of Zen. I love to watch them from the kitchen window going through their grazing routine. I did something that I was not happy about, but had to be done... For the first time since 1997, I do not own sheep. I sold the ewes and lambs to Dave Nackley. He is a great person to own sheep and I am glad he owns them, but it was a hard thing to do.

The guilt comes in because I bought a computer (you know to replace the one that took the radish and I had to go to the library). I was unable to efficiently do my work without a computer.

Dave and Claire were in shock because I took them completely out of their element and went to the ultimate media place... the mall media box store... I have not seen Claire so silent for so many hours. Dave was sweating and looked like the deer in headlights while being bombarded with t.v. screens, accessories, cell phones, computers, mini DVD players, etc...

Generally, I do go to the local guy and buy a local computer. I had a slim financial thing going on and had to break down and succumb to the box store thing. I DID go to the local Radio Shack/Hardware/Household place to get the digital camera and cords however. I like them there and it made the guilt of selling sheep and turning them into media shock feel a little better (?)

I did get a goat out of the whole deal. An alpine named Peppermint Patti. Yes, Patti with an "i". My friend Tim loves Alpines and Phragmites (SCI goat) is mortified that I defiled the hollowed grounds of her pasture with a non feral goat species. I offered her to Tim at cost. I think the very non-combative Alpine and Phrag will be happy about this.

Back to media. Guess what?! I can liberally add photos and video to this blog now!

Spring Rains

2008-04-28T18:17:00.002-04:00

I love the green after a spring rain. The clean smell. The hope that the leaves finally come and my allergies going with them... A funny thing age. I use to hold it over my sister that I was not allergic to everything and didn't have asthma like she did... Well, it comes to you in time...

Dr. Brown died. He was a Food Science Proff at Cornell. He dealt with the cheeseheads like me. I was disappointed when he wasn't at the PPS meeting last Wednesday. I liked the conversations with him. He challenged me and we always had a conversation that made me think about where I was going with various cheese projects. I didn't always agree with him, but what is a friendship if you always agree on things? I made a brief appearance at the funeral. I missed the calling hours and didn't know him that well, so didn't feel right in staying and all. I liked him and I have this thing about funerals and people I like and respect. You will be missed Dave Brown! Darn it, you will not judge my cheeses at the NYS Fair!

I am hopeful and frustrated. The lean months are better this year, but they still bring stress. The lack of computer has made this especially difficult. It looks like it is not as easy to reclaim the computer as I thought. Library visits... This will be remedied with a new computer and eventual fix of the old.

Farm stand will be open in a couple of weeks!

Lambs are getting bigger. Moose is second in line for a calf. Grass is growing. I start cheesing again pretty soon.

I will be looking into the idea of the book on starting a dairy processing business.

April showers bring May flowers

2008-04-04T13:15:00.002-04:00

With homeschooling, we have this opportunity to teach Claire these wonderful poems and sayings that go with life. Some of them we learned in school, others from parents or books. Claire likes to improvise when she cannot remember some of them. This is a favorite one today as there are no sun rays beaming down to earth and after lessons, she was relegated to runnign errands for us and our neighbor (with Dave). Me, I have to go to library to use computer.

Email is not working great on this computer, so I will try another one. Maybe. I may just go home and forget about trying to stay in contact with the world outside of Madison, NY.

Dave asked to have our farm de-listed with our agent. I am not sure how he worded it, but he is eternally going to try to make things "smooth" for the relationship with him and whomever he is talking to ont he phone. He can be cuttingly to the point with me, but he is a huge softy with others. Tom may try to sell his farm as well. Can we put them together for a price that will make all people happy? He is in pain and I hope he stops this whole idea. Milking cows was not suppose to be penence for sins.

In moments of stress, I accidently double paid my cheese loan payment last month! Scrambling to make up for that. Never pay bills while stressed. Never do anything financial when stressed.

Got blue cheese cultures. Want to play with this one blue recipe. The devon milk and a blue is hauntlingly good. I have cheese supplies to sell in the farm store now. Will try to get some of that together as soon as I can. Hope to officially open it on the first weekend of May. I finally got a reluctant ok from Dave. I think it will only be good. The cheese was decent this make and I have local products collected for sale. I did give up Hamilton. I need a local outlet. The Peppermill may be a good location as well. Leslie suggested I think about it. I like the idea. We will see.

Happy spring! (sheep are out, sure sign of spring for me).

Waiting Sucks

2008-04-02T17:41:00.003-04:00

Ok, I should not start with a bad word. I am not a patient person. I try hard to be, but I vent. I need to and will buy a bottle of wine tonight...

We are trying to sell the farm and the cheese business. It is not because I don't like what I am doing or am not making money. We have family health stuff to deal with in MA. I am tired. I can make cheese anywhere.

I have offers for the cheese business. If we stay, do I sell this? What do I do then? If it is here will it make the farm easier or harder to sell? There is over 600# of cheese in the cooler. Do I retail it local? Do I wholesale it? Do we open the farm store like planned as though we will be here always? Should I make more cheese? Should I just take the whole thing with us? Do I sell and repopulate a plant somewhere else?????

I hate unknowns like this. Especailly when I have to deal with a variable tempered husband who is less fun to live with when there are so many unknowns.

Next thing to ponder... where? Washington County NY, VT, Berkshires, NH... All have their plus and minus arguments. I just want a simple farmstead and make cheese. I want my Kerry cows and maybe a devon or two for butter and blue cheese. I want calm and order. (what was that calm and order?).

I got the plant and the Cut and wrap room cleaned. I did leave that for a day. I hate to do that, but I hurt so much. It was a nice thing to ponder everything with the steam coming from the vat and the cool breeze from the cracked open window. I have to finish the boiler room and get the next round of cheeses waxed. That will be tomorrow and Thursday. Tomorrow I will have to confirm that people are or are not coming to the cheese workshop this weekend. Did that again... you know they say they are coming... I don't market and then they don't send deposit. Busy life means loose ends.

Think happy cheese thoughts!

Beeswax

2008-03-28T13:55:00.002-04:00

I officially have over 600# in the coolers now. Beeswaxed all the Gouda. Have a lovely burgundy colour I made for the Havarti and black for the Dunlop. Cut hand bad while chipping out beeswax. Had to have Tim (cow breeder) drop off the arm length gloves to make cheese yesterday. Also dropped one of the wheels in the wax (hand hurt + thin wheel = splash). Wax makes a mess.

Beeswax is hard to work with. Brittle. You have to use another "oil" to work with it. Vegetable shortning, olive oil, mineral oil or whey butter are the better ones to work with. It imparts a mead flovor through the cheese. Works nice on gouda. Not so good the cheddar types.

I am tired, but happy that cheese making is coming along as well as it has this year.

It Took the Radish

2008-03-25T17:02:00.003-04:00

Well the computer finally took the radish. It limped through taxes and responces to the MOA signing for the Kerry Cattle Society and then it kept throwing errors at me. I am now at the library. Have a cold. It is blustery. I made about 90# of cheese in that little vat of mine! Woof!

Have over 500# in the coolers now. This is nice. Waxing left and right. Dunlop, Havarti (one batch), Honey Gouda...

People are interested in the farm. I don't think the message is getting out there correctly. After the computer thing is sorted, I'll be working on that...

Have to keep going. I only have 30 minutes on this thing.

New Farmers

2008-03-07T20:39:00.002-05:00

I was a new farmer once. I was and am still a hopless dreamer. Marge thinks that is why we get on so well. Dreamers actually have a possible job in life. They call them "Planners". This can be a Conservation Specialist (doing conservation plans), CNMP plans if you want to consider extra large farms, Financial Planner (so not me), consultant who does business plans... A lot of non-profit, educational and government types also have this planning bit about them. See there is more to dreamers than just pretty clouds to look at!

I have to do this talk about Business Plans tomorrow. I like the process of business planning. Dave thinks it is a waste of time. Sucks to be perfect! I like it because I can put all of the contingencies in paper and then use this as a "To Do" list. Being organizationally challenged, I need "to do" lists to function.

Business Plans can serve a few functions. They can get you financing. They can assist you in planning an new enterprise. They can be adapted for a grant to make it sound like you know what you are talking about... I've used them for all of the above.

My farmstead cheese business plan was the most fun to write. See, I am an obsessive planner if I use the words "fun" and "business plan" in the same sentence. It is different than a term paper. More like a strategic plan.

I am roughly on plan. A few things like a compressor that cooked Christmas cheeses in November, a boiler guy that didn't give me what I asked for and then charged me more for it... Little thinks like that were kinda planned for. After the nervous break down... I started to make more cheese.

I am making cheese most every day right now. Gouda yesterday. Havarti today. Over 60# of cheese and after my talk for the New Farmers program my county extension person is hosting, I will be making yoghurt and setting some milk up for Quark. Cheese cheese cheese. A great thing happened today too. A local woman came by to get milk for cheese making. She is going to try ricotta and fresh moz. I sold her a half-pint of rennet. She is getting into the whole cheese thing.

Right now I also have to revisit the Marketing Plan. Package design, labels, UPC codes, etc, regional focus this year... Wooohooo, more cheese, more planning!

New Cheese Season

2008-03-06T16:26:00.002-05:00

I did survive the winter. Winter is still here, but I am more opptomistic about things. A lot has happened... All cheesy things too.

Got to go to Long Island to help with the shooting of an t.v. show called "Kitchen Nightmares" with this chef Gordon Ramsey. The premise is that he goes into a restaurant in trouble and tries various things to help them succeed rather than fail. This restaurant was an Italian one. Tuscan influence I believe. I was there to make sure the fresh mozzarella bit worked out. I had many contingencies planned for. Even brought stuff to do the direct acidified version if needed (tricky for a newbie who needs it "on" for the camera. They did do a good stretch for the camera. He got bits about the making of the actual curd wrong, but he did do great for such short notice and only working with this buffalo moz. in the UK. It was fun and I enjoyed the whole bit.

After that, I went up to Orford, NH to work with Bruce and Christine Balch with their 100% milking devon herd. BOY was that milk different than Kerry and Ayrshire milk. Very high fat and solids. Like working with jersey milk, onlu not musky like that milk can get. I liked the color, the clean smell and the way it made a lactic curd (quark). Any of you considering a blue cheese, get yourself a herd of these cows! I am impressed.

I did learn that I do not like the vats made up there in NH. The man was helpful and did take questions at all hours, but the vat had a 2 degree difference from the top to the bottom for a raw milk cheese. The agitator was very quick, even at the low speed and you have to be a rather tall person to work in the 35 gal. vat. It was designed to be a chevre vat I guess. That is about all I would recommend it for.

Started to make cheese for the year. Commercial batches, not the stuff I do on the kitchen or cut&wrap room counter. Made my standard, gouda. Dave and I piped over the hot water from the propane hot water heater to help stabilize the cook temperature. That made things better.

I have been experimenting with blue cheeses for the last month. The devon milk intregued me. I have this bloomy rind/blue thing in mind using those Italian molds I bought 3 years ago and never fully utilized. That and I will play with bloomy/surface rind cheeses with those moulds regardless of the blue thing going on..

Computer is not in a happy place and has to be replaced.

Sheep had lambs. I think the high grain prices will spell the end of many flocks this year. I already heard about a couple rather large flocks selling out. Too bad. They use to be such a great "beginner" farmer animal. I love the calm, simple needs of a sheep. They are also wonderful for children to work with. Who can resist lambs in the spring? They are Maple Sugar for me (early spring thing).

Have to get back to getting farm stand ready for the season...

From COMFOOD about the election from another Farmer

2008-02-19T14:45:00.001-05:00

http://www.commondreams.org/archive/2008/02/14/7062/

The Capital Times <http://www.madison.com/tct/>
Jim Goodman:
Clinton, Obama must answer to farmersJim Goodman ?
2/14/2008 7:12 am

The Wisconsin primary is less than a week away, and I have some questions for the Democratic candidates, Sen. Hillary Clinton and Sen. Barack Obama.I would like to be enthusiastic about this election, I really would. After the past eight years, who wouldn't be ready for the "change" that they talk about? Even the Republicans are talking about change.It seems, however, that the American people may have little to say about what that change will be. The media have already decided who the viable candidates are, and the superdelegates may decide who the Democratic nominee will be. We are supposed to act like a nation of sheep and just go along, but perhaps this time we won't.Wisconsin is a state where agriculture is still important, and while farming may not be as glamorous as, say, politics, we still have more people engaged in agriculture-related jobs than any other occupation in the state. Still, when politicians come to Wisconsin, they may do the obligatory photo op on a farm, but they spend their time courting the voters in the big cities. So what are Clinton and Obama promising people like me -- people who spend more time worrying about cows than poll numbers?Many farmers in Wisconsin don't have health insurance. I'm lucky because I do. It's not very good insurance; it's expensive, and it doesn't pay for much of anything. I need to be really sick before I can collect. Clinton and Obama both say they have a health care plan. I don't think they do; they have another insurance plan. They want people to have insurance, but insurance is not health care. They're looking out for the insurance companies, not the people. They should support giving us the same coverage they have. Put everyone in the plan -- if it's good enough for them, it's good enough for us.As farmers, we are told we need to compete in the global marketplace. They have both said they want to level the playing field so we can compete fairly with farmers around the world and we will win. No, we won't; we won't win, and neither will farmers anywhere else in the world. Clinton has some history with agri-business corporations Monsanto and Tyson and the world's largest food retailer, Wal-Mart. Is it part of their corporate philosophy to let farmers win?Both Clinton and Obama support biofuels as a means to end our dependence on foreign oil, yet corn and soy production is based on oil -- diesel fuel for tractors, oil to manufacture crop chemicals and fertilizer, oil for transportation and processing. They both want to increase auto fuel economy standards, but not for 18 or 20 years! Why not now?They both support local and regional food systems -- buy fresh, buy local. Good, but what will they do to make it work? Will they take food out of trade agreements and encourage American farmers to grow food instead of commodities? Or will food, like health care, be just another money maker for corporations?Will they cap subsidy payments and give responsible farmers a chance? Will they encourage a set-aside for marginal land that should never be farmed? Will they restore government purchase of surplus crops to establish fair and stable farm and consumer prices?Do they plan to do anything to rein in the power of multinational grain corporations? Those corporations now dump our cheap subsidized grain on southern nations, undermining the local economy and, as in Mexico, driving farmers off their land and across the border to work in the United States. There's your immigration problem; our corporations created it, and walls and fences won't cure it.Do they know the term food sovereignty? It is a simple concept. It recognizes the right of people, all people, to grow the food of their choice -- food that is nutritious, safe and culturally appropriate. Food sovereignty demands that food be healthful, green, fair and affordable. The only problem some might see with this idea is that people would profit, not corporations.The candidates' support for local and regional food systems is sorely needed, and I hope they agree that we need to let the rest of the world feed themselves.Obama's campaign recently told the Bush administration that he didn't really need any foreign policy advice from the architect of the worst foreign policy in a generation. Bush's agricultural policy is just as bad. Change it.Jim Goodman is a farmer in Wonewoc and a policy fellow for the Food and Society Fellows Program.Jim Goodman ? 2/14/2008 7:12 am

Exhausted

2008-01-27T22:46:00.000-05:00

I think I am beyond finding an answer anymore. I will never get it right. I am not put in a position where my decisions will make a difference anymore. I am just a simple housewife on a simple farm in the middle of the state of New York. Only I am not simple and this farm is so far from simple. I could get it right. All of it right. I am just not suppose to. Then it would work and everything would be OK and people would tell me what a great person I am.

Is it wrong to want to leave because you are alone? I see food trends and livestock management trends before a lot of people. I tell them all about it. They make money and I am left with a not so simple farm. It is harder when the people around you laugh at those incites and then someone where you should be makes that money. Someone in some place where you want to be, not here.

I have moved beyond burned out. I was there 7 years ago when people were not truthful about their interests in the Stafford Slaughterhouse and when in my innocence I said something about it... I was made irrelevant. I am still living with that irrelevance and I have no desire anymore. I let people tell me how I should feel or what I want to do. That was not and is not me. It is easier to bark and growl like that dog chained to the dog house... ignored...cold...

I see morons here trying to pretend they are the next guru. The big one, the con-artist and his foolish followers looking to spend money on a dream he will crush once he has spent your $60,000; $120,000; $250,000. I don't have the money, but some fools part with it and some hill billy farmers want to be him. I saw through it and I was made irrelevant.

I make rash decisions to survive stress. They don't always make sense then either. I just don't like anger or people yelling. I hate anger. I cower like the dog again. Afraid. I am here. I hate people who take advantage of other people. I hate people who don't care. I hate people who make others feel bad only because they do. I hate feeling powerless. I am here.

We are going to sell this place. The push over the edge was health issues in both sides of the family. I cannot tell you where we will be. I know I will be making cheese. I love making cheese. It gives me purpose. We will not budge much on the price. It is worth it. We have done a lot to this place. Someone can make A LOT of money with this cheese business. Again, someone else, but we have to leave. It is time to let someone else make a lot of money...

Selea died today

2008-01-24T17:21:00.001-05:00

My daughter's favorite farm animal and companion at the swing set died this morning. We had a grave site service with Claire Dave and myself. She is in the garden with a tea towel and cardboard box from Christmas. Claire is upset. We took her to Symeons form lunch to cheer her up. She enjoyed the meal, but did seem so quiet in the car. It is a sad day for Bear.

South Wind

2008-01-22T18:01:00.000-05:00

Woke to smoke and Dave with a scowl sitting in the green chair. Dave tends to be like this. I cannot remember if he had pants on though. The south wind was pretty strong with this storm coming through and the draft is touchy with certain south winds. Smoke! Once you get her up and hot, boy the place is warm, be lazy and the smoke comes in.

Next, no water pressure. South wind again. Seems Dave forgot that when a cold south wind is forcasted, we need to move the brooder light into the cubby hole (workshop area where pressure tank is for the whole place). Mr Grumpy stormed out of the house confident that one of my Kerry cows broke a water line again and his day would be ruined. Nope. He didn't put lamp in cubby hole. Worse yet, the boiler got more of an arctic blast that expected and the whole blooming thing was frozen. I almost died.

For those of you who have a steam boiler to heat your cheese vats, what is one think cast iron hates? Frozen water. My day seemed doomed. I have learned to have this calm "will my world just calm down" demeaner that I didn't have in my youth. I switch heaters from cheese plant and water heater room (turned on that one evern though I don't use it lately). A copper pipe burst, but so far... Funny how religion comes with desperation... I don't think that boiler had so many prayers associated with it since it was made!

Made some rum/tea brack to cheer the spirits.

South Wind use to mean warmer weather. I think I need to go back to a place where south wind means warmer weather.

Chicken Love and Costume Dramas

2007-12-27T23:43:00.000-05:00

I was watching an old copy of a BBC costume drama. I watch them in the cold winter. They make me dream of being somewhere other than the arctic tundra. Maybe I am just an old sap. That or I miss my youth and the ability I had to just go when and where I want. Cannot just go to Paris on a whim for the weekend with a farm, child or husband to find sitters for. I don't like soaps or romance novels but some Bronte or Austen and I am there through two or three VHS tapes even with poor sound quality and my reels needing cleaning! My peace at horrid hours of the evening for a dairy farmer!

On the couch as I am getting up I find one of Claire's new Poultry mags. The british small holder one with the children in it. She loves that one. I like chickens. They have this peaceful thing about them like sheep do. A kind of equilibrium with the world.

When I was little, our neighbors had this farm. We lived in this cul de sac on the edge of their farm. The farm was eventually an island with developments surrounding it with possible roads ending on the edges of their fields. The place had tobacco sheds, a tidy New England barn with halls and rooms they said their father and uncle hid things during the rations in the war. In the cellar they had this chicken area. Not so much a room if I remember. Nests were wooden with tobacco leaves in them to keep the bugs out. Like everything else on the farm, tidy...

It was their place. The pride they took in it that got me into this "farm thing". We could set the clocks to Stanley mowing his lawn. My mother liked to watch them bring the milk cows (a guernsey and a jersey if my memory is correct) up the lane. They had this horse Chubby. A cross of Belgian and something. Maybe 15hh. I'm thinking Suffolk, but who knows anymore. They used him to cultivate tobacco. I use to love to watch Adolph cultivate tobacco. When the horse was tired, he'd step on a few plants.

Back to the chickens (I'll tell you about Katey, the jump roap and the heifer later). Britt and I were exporing as was our job at the time. It usually meant going to the farm to see if we could beg a tour of the grey barn. We saw this hen. She was limping or something. Just not right. We figured that to be nice, we'd catch the hen and show Stanley or Adolph so they could fix her. To make a long story short, we were caught "chasing chickens" and sent home. I was horrified. I was in love with everything about that place and it stuck that I was thought as mean enough to do that to them.

If I had Claire with me then... things would have been different. She doesn't have this fear of failure and she has this uncanny ability to walk up to any chicken and pick it up. She has even trained one of her birds (Salea) to swing on a swing with little protest. Chicken chores generally mean she hasn't collected eggs yet, or fed or watered them. She is basically on the floor of the chicken coop talking to and holding one of her birds... Mean old mum then has to open the window and ask if chores are done yet! She loves those birds.

Winter

2007-12-26T17:44:00.000-05:00

It is dark and cold in Central New York in the winter. I dread going down to the lower shed to feed animals. I love to watch them eat and to visit with them, but the blast of cold coming down from Rte 20, across the pasture and slap into my face! We have changed buildings and slopes of things, so the drifts and wind currents are different. That and Dave snapped the dog run line with the spear and never found it necessary to fix it (it was a mistake you see), so my only support life line going down the hill from the side poarch to the sheep shed is, well gone. I tried the sled that I use to bring grain down, but well... a 50# sack of grain on the stomach hurts after taking a spill over a bank.

I think I mentioned my lack of grace once before... Marge is even naming a cheese after me "Grace". At least the wheel chair ramp is down. Poor Marcia has to be lifted into the house, but at least I don't do any more splat dives...

The aging/farmstand structure is done. Well the structure is. I am awaiting the final $$ to give to the great contractors on that project and to finish the guys that installed my boiler incorrectly and charged me for doing it wrong and then just looking at it! I got some aging shelves for Christmas. Thank you Dave. We dug the ditch by hand and pick on Christmas Eve. The ditch will be for the electricity line.

Hank still hasn't paid me for the bank charges he caused after bouncing a check to pay for the workshop I did for his organization back in August. I gave up a Farmers' Market and everything! I am becoming cynical about non-profit agencies that are here to help the poor disadvantaged farmer. If we get paid for product and services, we aren't poor then are we? I think he missed the idea. Well live and learn. I will not do workshops for non-profits unless I see the money up-front any more.

Shaun Lord bought two of the IN Kerry cows from me. She is a great person and I like how she has consistently improved her herd of Dexters. I have Kelmscott Larry up to Dependa Bull. I have to run up there to visit him and to get those measurements and all. Patti Adams is drawing Kelmscott Seamus at K State right now and Dana Wakefield has drawn Mountain Shade Ebon. They represent the three Kerry families in the US.

Looking for an intern for 2008. Someone interested in doing Farmers Markets, working on rinds and who is interested in developing their own cheese. With David's health and Marcia not in the best physical shape, I need to have more flex time while at the same time expanding the cheese side of the business. I think that there is real potential for someone who is really interested in becoming a cheese maker to try some things out while someone with more experience can help. That and they will have access to awsome organic milk, markets, etc...

Visiting with other cheesemakers

2007-10-19T22:04:00.000-04:00

I got to see the Amish cheese maker today. Found this lovely little Raw milk cheese plant in Richfield Springs. Dan is a decent sort, clean and simple place, nice cheese. I like him.

Dave, Claire Tim Powers and I were on this road trip. We picked Tim up. Tim took us over the river and through the woods. We had no idea where we were by the time we got there. Got to see a lot though and there were plain and pretty roads along the way. Took Rte 20 back (needed to get Tim some Stewerts coffee and us some petrol). The trip made sense when we got back to Rte 20.

Met the other wanna-be cheese maker. Andelo. He, like Rosemary Belforti, is trying to make a cheese using Kefir cultures. Interesting. Reminded me of some of Brian Rivington's creations he made in our plant last summer. Rind is too dry, paste is yeasty, doesn't have strong goat flavor... Claire liked the older cheese. Not so much his younger one.

He has this neet goat barn and was in the process of making the milking parlor. I'll get photos developed and see about pasting on the blog at some time.

Would love a digital camera, but we need to make it through the winter. Maybe for my birthday...

I bought two wheels of the Caerfili for the market this weekend from Dan. I am short on aged cheeses and he is in need of thinning his inventory. He is learning. I think that he will become a very good cheese maker with time. He has the Margaret Morris book and is an inquiring mind. Something about him makes me think he'll do pretty good.

A couple of more cheesemakers on Rte 20 corridor and we can get a trail! Need that cheese cluster. Want the tourists!

My goats milk project is not so good. Looks like the volume is slipping with the quality. It was 1 mil. SCC again. I have to toss the wheel most likely. I don't need a "late blower" in the cooler. I'm going to put it into a seperate smaller cooler and see what happens. It will be an educational cheese for future workshops, not something I want to sell. I've already dubbed it "Stinking Goat". Some people seem to think that milk for cheese can be crap. Well, no. It actually has to be better than the stuff going into the UHT ultra-filtered bottles of fluid milk-food that supermarkets pass off as a dairy product. You want good-bugs working, not not-so-good bugs working. Neet thing if the goat boys get that.

Our herd will be drying off February/March. I need the goats milk until then. We will be milking about 6 cows until April. I'll be making a lot of cows milk cheese until then (and supporting the whole deal with cheese sales). Daunting yet somehow I like this challange. Bout time the cheese stepped up to the plate.

Splat Dives

2007-10-13T19:30:00.000-04:00

My back hurts. I am squerming in my seat. Had to check bank balance for hundredth time. Did market deposit and all it did was cover some moron's bounced check and the bank fees. Thanks! No more favors for anyone. I cannot afford people anymore. I do workshops again, it is on my dollar. No more helping organizations use them as fundraisers or projects to check off of grant projects!

So, the splat dive. We have this handicap ramp outside of our house. It is our way to make the house more inviting to my mother in-law. She is in a wheelchair. I am determined a few times a year, however to try this ramp out to see how far and fast I can do a splat dive onto the ground! I think I have wheel chair envy!

Landed face down. Knee and left hip were involved somehow. Belle showed that she does care. Tail quiver. Tongue crazy trying to lick mud off face and I bring her back to house. Poor pup. I bet she never saw a chubby woman do such accrobatics before!

I am having more conversations with people who are actually interested in sustainable agriculture and great food this year. There was this shift of people in the region this last year. I am finally encouraged. Even looks like Green Rabbit is sold! I hear it is a young couple interested in farming. Great!

Brought Lorenzo home yesterday. Dennis MacDonald did the hauling. I like him. I do think he figures I'm off, but he is game to see what is next on the agenda here. Lorenzo promptly chased sheep, harassed the Kerry cows on the south pasture and jumped the fence to have closer discussions with the Dexter bull doing clean up breeding on the heifers (and now dairy herd). Too much testosterone.

Gailen Bridges finally sent the pedigree info on the KY Kerry cows.

Things are working out slowly. I am just pissed that people can still take advantage of my passions and cause wreckage in my finances just when things are starting to look up (again). A couple more days of wholesale sales and I'll be sorted, but damned if I help again!

chevre and Steve Baker

2007-10-10T18:16:00.000-04:00

Well we finally did it! Charles Farnham Sr. dropped off the first load of goats milk. Had to take sample to Verona Labs to get it tested for SCC and antibiotics. Made Chevre. 25 gal. for the first batch. I was relieved. I was dreading 60 gal for the first batch.

Seemed decent. Goats milk does smell different than cows milk. I've done it before, it is just a smell that takes me a bit to get use to. Thank God it is good milk. I'll get results tomorrow.

We couldn;t kill the broilers (gone mini-turkeys). I gave them to Steve Wratten. In our negotiations for the birds I saw the meanest little white bantam rooster! Dave has been asking for one for his cousin for 5 years! I figured it was an even trade! Steve moves fast with a net! Got the rooster and came home. Dave visits it a few times a day and is grinning from ear to ear! It is pretty with pink legs and a stut about him... Dave named it after Stave Baker. He was a friend from MA who had a run in with the first bantam rooster. Apparently the story goes that Chris Bruelman (when he ran the auction some 20 years ago) let it go from the box at the Northampton Cooperative Auction and it terrorized theplace for weeks! It will be fun to see how this revenge project goes. I hope he lives happily in the haymow on this pretty little farm on Rte 12 in Sangerfield!