Jamie Paxton is a chef and local foods advocate whose work focuses on helping people learn about and access local, seasonal, and sustainable food. She lives in Great Barrington and works in the Berkshires and the Hudson Valley.
May marked the 42nd consecutive month that Northeast farms have earned less for their milk than it costs to produce it. That’s 42 straight months of operating at a loss. The New England dairy farmer may well be an endangered species.
“I believe in a regional food system. In a perfect system, we’d have a little bottling plant here in South County and the milk wouldn’t leave the county.”
-- Balsam Hill Farm owner Morven Allen
To battle the volatility of milk pricing, the Turners have turned to a number of strategies. Carla and Paul have the sugaring operation, which provides an additional livelihood for them.
