This fall, Cabot’s farm family owners are opening their farms to thank YOU for your support. Cabot Creamery Cooperative has over 800 farmer owners; but for this event, Open Farm Sunday will be celebrated at 21 farms in New England and New York: Freund’s Farm (CT), Fletcher Farm (MA), Fort Hill Farms (CT), Thorncrest Farm … Read more
Visit Odyssey Bookshop in South Hadley on Wednesday, August 21 at 6:30pm for Milk Matters, a presentation of dairy farms, food, and all things bovine with Lucille Benoit, author of Come, Bos, and Denise Barstow of Barstow’s Dairy Store and Bakery. Journalist and dairymaid Lucille Benoit speaks about the current crisis for small dairy farms … Read more
US agriculture needs a 21st-century New Deal If the concept of parity sounds quaint, that’s because it is. Farmers first achieved something like parity in 1910-1914, just before America entered World War I. During the war U.S. agriculture prospered, financing flowed and land speculation was rampant. Those bubbles burst with the end of the war. … Read more
Country Folks Magazine | July 31, 2019 By Laura Rodley During June six farms in Western Massachusetts created a way for customers and the public to be more involved in their farms and to increase business. They created a postcard-like passport that could be stamped at each business. After all the businesses had been visited, … Read more
The AgriMark Cabot Creamery Cooperative holds the Young Cooperators (YC) Leadership Conference for the next generation annually. The conference is meant to build leaders in the Cooperative, grow connection to our amazing brand, and network with fellow farmers. It’s one of my favorite weeks of the summer! This year, the conference was hosted right here … Read more
By Jo Comerford Posted June 24, 2019 In The People’s Blog JUNE IS DAIRY MONTH IN MASSACHUSETTS. THAT’S WHY I JOINED CONSTITUENTS AND DENISE BARSTOW FOR A TOUR OF HER FAMILY’S DIARY FARM IN HADLEY. Denise is an 7th generation farmer. That means that her family has cared for the land they’ve farmed for over … Read more
As we wrap up Dairy Month, the 2019 Dairy Month Lecture Series is also coming to a close. The Dairy Month Lecture Series has been my pet project for the last three years. I have basically become a professional eavesdropper, listening for any mention of milk, cheese, butter, and dairy farms – taking mental notes … Read more
Acres of No-Till Corn: 240 acres Decrease in Fuel Usage (for Planting): 67% Farmer Hours Saved: 120 hours Tons of Carbon Sequestered: 72 metric tons In 2019, Barstow’s Longview Farm went 100% no-till. We transitioned to no-till over the course of four years and moving away from tillage: a strategy this farm and many have … Read more
“Gentle, gentle” a mother tells her 3 year old as he grabs handfuls of chocolate brown hair off of Moose the farmdog, who has ambled onto the Barstow’s Dairy Store and Bakery porch in search of crumbs and attention. I smile and reassure her that Moose is great with kids, in fact he’s got a … Read more
June is Dairy Month! Learn more about how dairy impacts our economy, planet, diet, land use, and how dairy farming connects us with heritage in the Pioneer Valley. Join the conversation with experts across all fields of dairy (get it?!). The Dairy Month Lecture Series is hosted by Barstow’s Longview Farm and Barstow’s Dairy Store and Bakery. … Read more