Thanks to Carrots ”˜N’ Cake, I’ve had the opportunity to travel the country and experience some pretty amazing events. One of my favorites– and perhaps the most significant and life-changing for me– took place this time last year.
Last June, I participated in Stonyfield’s Blogger Barnstorming Tour with three other bloggers. Stonyfield believes in all things organic, so they wanted us bloggers to see why it is so important, especially to the farmers, who work so hard to produce a quality product for them. Visiting the various farms and seeing firsthand what goes into organic dairy production and growing organic produce really showed me its value– from how it benefits our health and the environment to how it enhances the lives of the farmers and their animals. Here’s a recap of my experiences on the four-day Blogger Barnstorming Tour.
Food with the Farmer’s Face on It
You know what’s really cool? Eating fresh veggies out of a garden without washing them or worrying about what weird chemicals are on them. It’s also pretty neat when iceberg lettuce has an actual flavor to it!
Stonyfield Plant Tour
The final stop of the Stonyfield Blogger Barnstorming Tour was at the Stonyfield plant for a tour of the facilities. But, before we toured the plant, we ate breakfast! Not surprisingly, breakfast at Stonyfield included lots of yogurt! So much, in fact, that we did a taste-test of a bunch of flavors.
Conventional Versus Organic
If you’ve been reading along with my barnstorming adventures, you probably know quite a bit about organic dairy farming by now. Well, it’s time to tell you a little bit about conventional dairy farms. In addition to visiting four organic dairy farms in Vermont, we also visited one conventional farm.
The Health in the Soil Determines the Health Above the Soil
Near Lake Champlain, Vermont, just a few miles from the Canadian border, you will find the Choiniere Family Farm. It’s owned and operated by Guy (pronounced “ghee”) and Beth Choiniere. Their children, Mathieu and Hannah, also help out on the farm quite a bit.
Great Grains
Another one of the organic dairy farms that we visited was the Beidler Family Farm in Randolph Center, Vermont. The Beidlers own 35 cows who’s milk goes to Stonyfield, Organic Valley or Cabot, who cooperatively makes Organic Valley Vermont Cheddar Cheese.
Cows, Cows, Cows
Before the Stonyfield Blogger Barnstorming Tour, I didn’t think twice about cows. To be honest, I thought they were dirty, smelly animals. But, after “getting to know” a bunch of them, I think cows are adorable, sweet, and sort of “magical!”
A Full Day On The Farm
What a day! My brain is totally spinning, but in a very good way! In the past 48 hours, I’ve learned soooo much about organics, dairy farms, and farmers. I cannot wait to share it with all of you! It’ll likely take me a few days to recap everything, so please bear with me.
Cow Teats, Canada, and Miss Vermont
Most random blog post title ever, right?!? Needless to say, today is off to an exciting start! My morning started at 6:30 AM for an early morning milking at Fournier Farms in Swanton, Vermont. The cows are milked by machines, but I still had the opportunity to milk a cow the “old-fashioned” way.
Farmers’ Dinner
Tonight was a real treat! We enjoyed dinner with three different organic farmers and their families- and let me tell you, there was no shortage of conversation this evening! We all had so much to talk about. Plus, I think the farmers wanted to know just as much about us bloggers as we wanted to know about them.
Barnstorming: The Basics
Holy cow! I’ve learned so much today about organics, farming, and cows today. It’s literally going to take me days and days to recap everything on my blog. There’s so much to tell ya about! With so much information to share, I figured it would be best to start my recap with the basics.
Waking Up in Vermont
I’m not going to lie, waking up in Vermont this morning was pretty sweet. I opened my eyes to gorgeous Lake Champlain right out my window. Ahhhh”¦ Anne and I got our run on first thing this morning. The weather was cool, but humid, and we did 4 miles in about 35 minutes.
Barnstorming: This Way!
The Stonyfield Blogger Barnstorming Tour is off to a great start! This morning, I drove up to Stonyfield’s corporate offices in Manchester, New Hampshire to meet our tour guides for the trip: Nancy Hirshberg, Vice President of Natural Resources, and Amy VanHaren, Social Media Manager.
Barnstorming We Will Go
Today’s the day! I’m heading to Vermont (and then New Hampshire) along with 3 other bloggers for the Stonyfield Barnstorming Tour. I’m totally jazzed for it! I’m not going to lie, I don’t know a lot about organics.
Stonyfield Blogger Barnstorming Tour
Barnstorming? Oh, yes, barnstorming! So, I have some exciting news! Back in April, I received an email inviting me to enter for a chance to attend the first ever Stonyfield Farm Barnstorming Tour.