Sustainability
A Dairy Cow’s Super Powers
What’s more sustainable than an animal that helps to grow its own feed? That’s exactly what a dairy cow does. The farmer feeds the cow. The cow makes manure (poops). The manure is then fertilizer for the fields in which the farmer grows feed like corn and hay for the cow. The dairy cow eats … Continued
Farmers Use Fit Bit Style Technology to Monitor Cow Health
Long before the Fit Bit was all the rage among those looking to get and stay fit, dairy farmers were relying on similar technology to keep them abreast of their cows’ health. Lilley Farms way up in the County, between Canada and Baxter State Park in Smyrna, was one of the first to start using … Continued
2019 Maine Green Pastures Winner – Cooley Farm
Marcia Dean and her family were recently honored as the Maine Dairy Farm of the Year and Green Pastures Award winner. Nearly 30 years ago, the future of Cooley Farm was put into the hands of the owner’s 14-year-old granddaughter. On August 25, 1990, the farm’s milking barn burned down, killing about 60 milk cows. Rufus … Continued
2018 Maine Green Pastures Winner – Highland Farms
Highland Farms, Inc. in Cornish has a long, interesting history in the Maine dairy farming community. With the upcoming generations, their future looks just as enduring. Family member and dairy farmer Libby Bleakney is proud that the family has been able to maintain their beautiful, well-kept farm so that the next generations come back to … Continued
2017 Maine Green Pastures Winner – Hall Farms
The Hall family has farmed in East Dixfield since 1816. When a dairy farm family is in a community for three, four, five, six, seven, or eight generations like many of Maine’s dairy farms, those families are not only deeply invested in their farm, but in their community. You’ll often see their names on school … Continued
Keeping Cows Cool in The Summer Heat
Dairy farmer Betsy Bullard with veterinarians Meghan Flanagan and Jana Zwetsloot of Annabessacook Veterinary Clinic during their weekly visit at Brigeen Farms in Turner. If a cow could speak, a dairy farmer would probably ask her 20 questions a day, at least, like: How are you today? Feeling all right? Can I get you anything? … Continued
