Vergennes dairy farm has the best milk

Tim and Kristen Essex have been receiving a lot of congratulations this winter after their business, Essex Farm of Vergennes, received the 2025 High Quality Milk Award from the Vermont Dairy Industry Association last month.

Mark your calendar for Dairy Sustainability Day, which will take place March 5, 10 a.m.-3:30 p.m. at American Legion Post 27 at 49 Wilson Road in Middlebury.

U.S. Sen. Peter Welch (D-Vt.), a member of the Senate Agriculture Committee, and U.S. Sen. Roger Marshall (R-Kan.) this week celebrated the U.S. House’s passage of their bipartisan, bicameral Whole Milk for Healthy Kids Act, legislation to support America … (read more)

Early bird registration is open for the Northeast Dairy Innovation Summit, which will take place March 10-11 in Albany, N.Y.

Vermont 4-H youth showcased their talents and dedication at the 2025 Eastern States Exposition.

Migrant Justice’s Milk with Dignity program is partnering with Vermont Way Foods to offer a new cheese made with Addison County milk.

“I challenge Mr. Schubart to name a farm in Addison County that isn’t operated daily by the owners with the owners putting in 10-15 hours a day of work.”

“Farming is a difficult and challenging business, which has to survive in an economy where consumers and governments are unwilling to reimburse farmers for the true cost of their labor and investment.”

“We will need to address the fact that healthy, environmentally sound agricultural crops and livestock cost more to produce and thus will cost more to buy.”

Results from the 2025 Dairy Conformation competition at Addison County Fair and Field Days on Tuesday, July 29.

See the results from the Diary Fitting and Showmanship competition at Addison County Fair and Field Days, held Thursday, July 31, 2025.

This funding will allow dairy processors to purchase specialized equipment to expand capacity, boost efficiency, lower energy consumption, improve existing products, and create new, high-value dairy products for the region.

The 2025 State 4-H Dairy Judging Contest provided an opportunity for 4-H dairy members to demonstrate their ability to evaluate and rank dairy cattle based on breed standards.

What does the dairy industry mean to Vermont? The Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets (VAAFM) this spring introduced a new report that helps answer that question.

Vermont has an estimated 750 to 850 year-round migrant farmworkers, primarily on dairy farms, along with about 150 partners and children, according to the report “Vermont Dairy Delivers.”