Choosing to Farm: New Generation Stories Jennifer Colby

“Raising animals is heavy. Even when it goes really well, it's heavy. And when you have losses, like we have had in the last couple of years, it changes the math -- even the finances of it. Okay, yeah, we lost money because we lost so many hens, but what we also lost sleep and tears and to wake up and go out and have a hundred chickens killed in one night--that happened to us once--and it just is so devastating.”—Hannah

 

“To know that food is not a product that you buy at the store and food is not something that is made by a company and branded and marketed to you, food is something that comes from the earth and nourishes your body.  That's more important to me than whether or not [our kids] decide to operate a farm.”—John

 

Boneyard Farm is a labor of love. Hannah and John began on a small farmstead on ten hardscrabble acres in northern Vermont. They scaled up in 2021, purchasing a former conventional dairy. With the help of the Vermont Land Trust and the farm’s previous owners, their 180-acre property is forever conserved as working agricultural land.

Hannah Doyle runs the day-to-day business of the farm and the vegetable operation. John is behind the scenes on infrastructure and maintenance, and he manages the rotational grazing and animal health for their livestock. He builds all the things and fixes all the problems. Two young boys, Reuben and Dimitri, help out on the farm and provide tons of laughter.



Boneyard Farm web site



Boneyard Farm email address

 

Boneyard Farm Instagram

 

Boneyard Farm Facebook

 

New England Grazing Network web site

 

Janet McNally’s Tamarack Farm web site

 

Vermont Grass Farmers Association web site


More educational and transformational offerings from Jenn Colby

 

Whole Human web site

 

Choosing to Farm Patreon link

 

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I came into farming really, as I got into it, being like--I'm a grower. That's where I want to grow my expertise; how to be a better caretaker for these animals, how to be more efficient with my time, with the land that we're using. To lean on people who are in processing, lean on them because their resources, their expertise are in processing or on the kosher side, lean on those people who really know what is required for it, bring them in and have them apply their expertise. The growth for me has been really needing to not just understand those other pieces much
more, but also get much more directly involved.

 

Robert Friedman is the founder and owner of Robariah Farms. Located in the Connecticut River Valley of Western
Massachusetts, Robariah Farms specializes in local, pasture-raised, kosher-certified poultry and other meats.

 

Robariah Farms raises slow-growing poultry breeds that thrive on pasture. Sustainable pasture management practices, including daily rotation of mobile shelters, provide animals with continuous access to fresh pasture, sunlight, and clean air, supporting healthy, vibrant life.

 

For processing, Robariah Farms applies an ethical, humane framework through its kosher certification. Local, kosher supervising agencies oversee the slaughter, plucking, evisceration, salting/brining, and packaging of each animal, certifying a higher standard of quality for the meat.

 

Robariah Farms offers CSA meat shares directly to customers, as well as wholesale discounts to food co-ops, farm stores, caterers, and institutions across New England.



Robariah Farms email address

 

Robariah Farms Instagram

 

Robariah Farms Facebook

 

Top 7 Quotes of Gene Logsdon Youtube

 

New England Grazing Network web site

 

Christine Jones soil health tour link

 

Vermont Grass Farmers Association web site

 

More educational and transformational offerings from Jenn Colby

 

Whole Human web site

 

Choosing to Farm Patreon link

 
Leave us a review or buy us a coffee at Choosing to Farm!

The Choosing to Farm podcast is all about telling origin stories, learning from the journeys, and creating connection among first-and returning-generation
livestock farmers and ranchers across the US and the world. After nearly 30 years working professionally
in agriculture as well as being a returning-generation farmer myself, I’m here to share stories, tips and resources to help livestock farmers and ranchers heal our relationship with success.  Want to help? Like, share or review this episode!  Want to help even more? Join our Patreon to support the show or even buy me a cup of coffee at the Choosing to Farm web site!


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The occasional summer I would go to Arkansas for a few nights when my family would make the trip out there from
Dallas, Texas, they would only stay for a short period  it was my aunt and uncle's Chicken farm. They were conventional growers for Tyson.  It was a fun time out there, but I do remember thinking  this is an enormous amount of hard work. My aunt and uncle never get to leave this farm and there's one thing I know for sure. And that's--I don't want to be a farmer.—Vanessa

 

Chickens can't be productive without a grain implement.  The other thing is a lot of our farmland needs a lot more nutrients in the soil. This is an input into the system, but the intention is that this input is helping make our soils
more productive and more regenerative over time so that we can support more ruminant animals on a given land base. Hopefully that will help the farm be more productive and profitable and sustainable. —Justin

 

Our names are Justin and Vanessa and we're first generation farmers with a passion for healing our environment.  Justin has a background in permaculture
design and education, and Vanessa is a graphic designer and marketer. We use our past experiences daily to grow our farm, and to help refine our customers understanding of regenerative agriculture, organic growing practices and how they can positively contribute to healing our food systems. We pride ourselves in providing high quality, fresh and healthy food from the land in a way that benefits the environment.

 

We deeply value our community, which makes our work rewarding, but we know food producers are facing some serious challenges (because of ongoing climate change) and we want to help face those issues head on. How our food is farmed can either add to the destruction of our
planet or it can do the opposite- creating abundance and resiliency across our communities.



Leaping Bear Farm email address

 

Leaping Bear Farm website

 

Leaping Bear Farm Instagram

 

Leaping Bear Farm Facebook

 

Vermont Land Trust web site

 

Real Organic Project

 

Vermont Farm & Forest Viability Program website

 

New England Farm Link website

 

Northeast Farmers of Color Land Trust website



2022 USDA Ag Census website

 

New England Grazing Network web site

 

Christine Jones soil health tour link

 

Vermont Grass Farmers Association web site

 

More educational and transformational offerings from Jenn Colby

 

Whole Human web site

 

Choosing to Farm Patreon link



Leave us a review or buy us a coffee at Choosing to Farm!


The Choosing to Farm podcast is all about telling origin stories, learning from the journeys, and creating connection among first-and returning-generation
livestock farmers and ranchers across the US and the world.  After nearly 30 years working professionally
in agriculture as well as being a returning-generation farmer myself, I’m here to share stories, tips and resources to help livestock farmers and ranchers heal our relationship with success.  Want to help? Like, share or review this episode! Want to help even more? Join our Patreon to support the show or even buy me a cup of coffee at the Choosing to Farm web site!


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Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/choosingtofarm/message

It feels good that we're providing this product for people's nutrition, for their families. They keep coming back to us
and appreciating that. We are who we are; we're the face, we talk to them, we have them to our farm for tours. That's what people are looking for.—Beth

 

We both have a full time job figuring out how to move this business forward that that you can't get done if you're picking eggs and putting down bedding in the layer houses or fulfilling orders. Can't do it.—Bruce

 

Beth Whiting and Bruce Hennessey are the co-founders and co-owners of Maple Wind Farm, a diversified pasture-based farm and USDA processing plant located in Richmond, Vermont.



Maple Wind Farm email address

 

Maple Wind Farm website

 

Maple Wind Farm Instagram

 

Maple Wind Farm Facebook

 

Pasture Pet website

 

Vermont Land Trust web site

 

USDA Poultry Plant in a Box video

 

New England Grazing Network web site

 

Vermont Grass Farmers Association web site

 
More educational and transformational offerings from Jenn Colby


Whole Human web site

 

Choosing to Farm Patreon link



Leave us a review or buy us a coffee at Choosing to Farm!


The Choosing to Farm podcast is all about telling origin stories, learning from the journeys, and creating connection among first-and returning-generation livestock farmers and ranchers across the US and the world.  After nearly 30 years working professionally in agriculture as well as being a returning-generation farmer myself, I’m here to share stories, tips and resources to help livestock farmers and ranchers heal our relationship with success. Want to help? Like, share or review this episode! Want to help even more? Join our Patreon to support the show or even buy me a cup of coffee at the Choosing to Farm web site!


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Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/choosingtofarm/message

I describe farming as really just one long extended expedition. It's very much like a mountaineering expedition where you wake up every day, you're working outside. You have problems, often new problems that crop up at least weekly. It's very much like being in a big mountain expedition where you're constantly working with the weather. You're working with the people on your team. You are focused on a goal. That takes all of your effort that you really have to commit to a hundred percent.—Bruce

 

It's very similar to being at a camp in a way,  because we're managing people; a lot of young energy, a lot of people that need training and direction and they're coming to work on our farm,…and a lot of teaching. –Beth

 

Beth Whiting and Bruce Hennessey are the co-founders and co-owners of Maple Wind Farm, a diversified pasture-based farm and USDA processing plant located in Richmond, Vermont.



Maple Wind Farm email address

 

Maple Wind Farm website

 

Maple Wind Farm Instagram

 

Maple Wind Farm Facebook

 

Grit by Angela Duckworth

 

New England Grazing Network web site

 

Vermont Grass Farmers Association web site

 

More educational and transformational offerings from Jenn Colby

 

Whole Human web site

 

Choosing to Farm Patreon link

 

Leave us a review or buy us a coffee at Choosing to Farm!


The Choosing to Farm podcast is all about telling origin stories, learning from the journeys, and creating connection among first-and returning-generation livestock farmers and ranchers across the US and the world.  After nearly 30 years working professionally
in agriculture as well as being a returning-generation farmer myself, I’m here to share stories, tips and resources to help livestock farmers and ranchers heal our relationship with success.  Want to help? Like, share or review this episode! Want to help even more? Join our Patreon to support the show or even buy me a cup of coffee at the Choosing to Farm web site!


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Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/choosingtofarm/message

Watching them [kids] come to the farm; at first, it can be quite challenging. There is definitely an arc of sort of comfortableness just with being outside doing chores, hard manual labor. That takes a minute for a lot of kids to adjust to.  But as they adjust, it's so cool to watch them come out of their shells.--Haley

 
Hello my name is Haley Goulet, I am a livestock manager at a community farm and work to educate the public about livestock farming. I am passionate about teaching folks about the origin of their food and continuing to learn the best ways of ethically raising meat.



Haley Goulet email address

 

Haley Goulet Instagram

 

Haley Goulet LinkedIn

 

Natick Community Organic Farm website

 

Natick Community Organic Farm Facebook



UMass Amherst ASCI website

 

Trustees of Reservations website

 

Community-Supported Agriculture (CSA) Model

 

New England Grazing Network web site

 

Vermont Grass Farmers Association web site

 

Your Transformation Story link—Click here to learn more!

 

Whole Human web site

 

Choosing to Farm Patreon link


Leave us a review or buy us a coffee at Choosing to Farm!


The Choosing to Farm podcast is all about telling origin stories, learning from the journeys, and creating connection among first-and returning-generation livestock farmers and ranchers across the US and the world.  After nearly 30 years working professionally in agriculture as well as being a returning-generation farmer myself, I’m here to share stories, tips and resources to help livestock farmers and ranchers heal our relationship with success. Want to help? Like, share or review this episode!  Want to help even more? Join our Patreon to support the show or even buy me a cup of coffee at the Choosing to Farm web site!


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Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/choosingtofarm/message