Over 1,100 People Visited Miller Farm Virtually

Vernon, VT – On Sunday, March 21, more than 1,100 visitors gathered virtually on Zoom and around their breakfast tables for a tour of Miller Farm in Vernon for this year’s Vermont Breakfast on the Farm. The southern Vermont dairy farm is currently managed by three families, Pete and Angela Miller, Art and Judy Miller, and Keith and Tina Franklin.

The families converted their farm from a conventional dairy to an organic dairy farm in 2009. They provide milk to Stonyfield Organic, and also sell up to 100 gallons of milk a day locally from their on-farm processing facility for their Miller Farm brand of milk.

The 60-minute tour featured the milking cow barn, calves, environmental practices, processing, and more. Hundreds of questions came in from viewers all across the country. After the tour, survey results showed that the percent of people who felt “very positive” about dairy farming increased by 30 percentage points, with a total of 96 percent of viewers feeling “very positive” or “positive” about dairy farming. Forty-three percent of viewers said they were likely to purchase more dairy products because of the tour experience. Some of the comments from viewers were:

• “It’s always good to see the people and animals behind the product. It adds a connection to food that we are missing as a society.”

• “I learned so much of how a dairy farm operates - and saw the love of the Miller family for their cows, for each other, and for farming.”

• “It's always nice to hear dairy farmers comment on "happy cows." As a consumer, I appreciate knowing that farmers have their cow’s best interest at heart.”

• “I am happy to hear that they care so deeply about the environment and are working to transition to carbon neutral. It was heartwarming to see their family business.”

• “Farming is a very stressful business. Seeing farmers with a positive attitude is uplifting . We cannot lose them!!! Thank you to all of them.”

Miller Farm cares for about 700 acres of land in a combination of corn, alfalfa, mixed grass and pasture land. By rotational grazing the cows, the farm sequesters carbon in the soil and is contributing to the U.S. dairy industry’s goal to become carbon neutral by 2050.

You can watch the virtual farm tour, stay up to date on Vermont Breakfast on the Farm events, and learn more about Miller Farm at www.VermontBreakfastOnTheFarm.com