Farm History
Warren started raising heifers at Top Rankin while studying at Sterling College and working for the Strong Farm in Craftsbury in the 1980s. In the early 1990s, he bought our land with the help of the Vermont Land Trust and began selling bulk milk. Tara joined the farm in 2006. She had worked for five years on a conventional dairy in Stratham NH and was looking to join a smaller, Organic alternative. Together, we have steadily milked 40-50 cows since the beginning of our dairy, recently scaling down slightly as we transition towards a raw milk dairy. We have three children: Ila (16), Branch (11), and Ruth (2). We hope to one day pass our farm on to them.
“…the care of the earth is our most ancient and most worthy and, after all, our most pleasing responsibility. To cherish what remains of it, and to foster its renewal, is our only legitimate hope.”
— Wendell Berry
Stewardship of the Land
It is essential to us to follow the best environmental stewardship practices at all times. This includes using rotational grazing; having 100% grass fed cows that eat perennial grasses instead of annual mono-crops like corn; maintaining a significant buffer on all river bottom land; fertilizing fields predominantly with dry, composted manure instead of liquid manure to reduce runoff; and permanently conserving all 180 acres of our farmland. In addition, we believe that strong local food economies and alternative product pathways from producers to consumers are essential to climate change adaptation. Our raw milk dairy provides our community with local and alternative food sources through direct-to-consumer sales and local supply chain retail sales, while reducing greenhouse gas emissions by minimizing transportation miles milk travels from farm to consumer. Climate resilience is especially essential as our community recovers from the largest climate disaster we’ve ever had (Johnson’s July 2023 flooding, followed by more flooding in December 2023), which resulted in permanently losing our grocery store. We deeply believe in our role of feeding our community through direct-to-consumer sales.
Guernsey Breed
Golden Guernseys, known for their rich milk and friendly demeanor, are the backbone of our farm. You can read more about the Guernsey breed here: https://www.thecattlesite.com/breeds/dairy/21/guernsey