A6 Thursday, December 23, 2021 THE DAILY NEWS

Christmas on the farm

ALL IN A DAY’S WORK: Families, workers adjust as cows still need care
By KORI SCIANDRA employees with children.

‘ Farm life on the holidays looks different than

ksciandra@batavianews.com Kendra, who also grew up on
For most families, Christ- the farm, considers life on
mas morning means children it does for most families. The cows wouldn’t be the farm during the holidays

waking up early greeted by
gifts left under the Christmas
tree from Santa Claus. After
a cup or two of their morning
brew, it’s time to open pres-
ents together around the tree.
However, for farmers and
families life on the farm con-
tinues on Christmas morn-
ing.
“Farm life on the holidays
definitely looks different
than it does for most fami-
lies. The cows wouldn’t be
very understanding if we
took a day off, so there are
still lots of jobs to be done,”
’
very understanding if we took a day off. to be just as normal as ever.
It’s common for both the
farmers and their employees
KENDRA LAMB to work during the holiday.
Lamb Farms, Oakfield “It depends on farm size,
but for our farm it takes five
people per eight-hour milk-
“At my house, my kids, to the farm to help get tasks ing shift, so we have lots of
Provided Photograph
when younger, would open completed sooner,” said help. In addition to milking
their stockings and wait un- Hauser. Lamb Farms displays a star that sits on top of the farm silo during
til I got home to open other Lamb Farms is a large See FARM A7 the Christmas season.
gifts. When my kids were operation with many chil-
older, they, too, would come dren on the farm, including
st
Lee Shuknecht Simply The Be In
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& Sons, Inc. Onion Harvest!!

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said Kenda Lamb of Lamb
Farms in Oakfield, Genesee www.shuknecht.com
County. “On holidays we
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ent, and each have their own USED ARMY TRUCKS & PARTS • FARM PARTS
traditions, the Lamb family STEEL SALES, INVENTORY & DISTRIBUTION
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their dad is home from the alanscole@abcolerealestate.com Lic. R.E. Salesperson
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Christmas morning. He usu-
ally tries to pop in around 6
a.m. to allow them to open
the gifts from Santa, so that
they have some things to en-
joy until he gets home from
the rest of the chores around
breakfast time,” said Ken-
dra. “Of course, this is each
family’s preference. While
my husband and I both work
on the farm, I stay home
with the kids on Christmas
morning. We try to pass the
time by starting to prepare
breakfast, turning on all of
the Christmas decorations,
and the kids will play with
those Santa gifts. Growing
up in a farm family myself,
my siblings and I waited im-
patiently while my parents
were in the barn milking
until we were old enough
to help in the barn to make
chores move along more
quickly.”
Similar to the Lamb fam-
ily, Meghan Hauser of Table
Rock Farm in Perry, Wyo-
ming County, celebrates
Christmas after the morning
chores are complete.
“On our farm, for Christ-
mas, we hope to have every-
one work a shorter shift than
normal. Often, we will try to
get some tasks done the day
before. We just want to work
on the basics on a holiday.
Often team members will
help each other complete
their tasks,” said Hauser.
As a 35-family farm, Ta-
ble Rock Farm, is filled with
family members who each
use their own discretion as to
how they celebrate together
on Christmas morning when
it comes to gift giving and
gift opening.

Provided Photograph

Claire Lamb, 10, and her sister,

Chloe Lamb, 12, are pictured in
their Christmas jammies.

Senate bill proposes review of milk pricing
By ALEX GAULT
agault@wdt.net
WASHINGTON — U.S. Sen.
Kirsten E. Gillibrand wants to
make the federal milk pricing
system better, and she’s intro-
duced a bill, with a bipartisan
group of senators, that would
take the first step to restructure
the system.
Earlier this month, Sens. Gil-
librand, D-N.Y, Patrick J. Leahy,
D-Vermont and Susan M. Col-
lins, R-Maine, introduced the
Dairy Pricing Opportunity Act.
The legislation would require
that the U.S. Department of Ag-
riculture begin to hold hearings
on the Federal Milk Marketing
Order within six months of pas-
sage.
The hearings would be called
to discuss changes that could be
made to Class I skim milk pric-
es, and Sen. Gillibrand said they
need to be called so farmers and
milk producers can have a voice
in the milk pricing process.
“These family farms are
beholden to the federal milk
pricing system, which is right-
fully considered one of the most
complicated commodity pric-
ing systems in the entire coun-
try,” Sen. Gillibrand said during
a press conference on Dec. 1.
According to the U.S. Farm
Bureau, milk prices in the U.S.
are regulated by Federal Milk
Marketing Orders, which set
Farm
From A6
staff, there are those caring
for the cows’ health, deliv-
ering babies – they love to
arrive on holidays – feeding
the cows and calves, etc. We
try to just do the minimum
work on Christmas, and our
employees’ families are
in the same boat, working
around the farm schedule
for their celebrations,” said
Kendra.
Maintaining traditions
takes time and effort. Lamb
Farms celebrates each
Christmas with a party as
they enjoy great food to-
gether. Employees, and their
families, enjoy a fun, joyous
celebration with the Lamb
Family each Christmas.
“For the animals, it’s just
another day I suppose. But
cows love consistency, so I
think that’s a gift in itself.
We also have a star on top of
the farm silo that is lit during
the Christmas season,” said
Kendra.
It’s also important to be
open to exploring new tradi-
tions. Table Rock Farm is
celebrating Christmas this
year by bringing in a food
truck for lunch and dinner
hours, so employees can
have a special meal.
“It’s a special privilege to
be a farmer on holidays like
Christmas. Although non-
farmers may enjoy having
the entire day to relax, we
as farmers, have important
work to do, and it feels good
to know we are taking care
of the needs of the cows,”
Hauser said. “I so appreciate
that all of our team members
understand their important
roles, too, and want to make
sure cows are cared for every
day.”
‘
It’s a special
privilege to be a
farmer on holidays like
Christmas ... It feels
good to know we
are taking care of the
needs of the cows.
MEGHAN HAUSER
Table Rock Farms, Perry
’
THE DAILY NEWS Thursday, December 23, 2021 A7
farmers and industry experts to truly fix the milk pricing sys-
about how the current pricing tem.
system does not cover the ris- “I’ve been asking farmers for
ing cost of production farm- a long time, ‘If you could start
ers face, from labor and fuel from scratch and change how
to corn and soy that is used for we price milk, what would you
feed,” she said. “Family farms do?’” she said. “Nobody’s really
also face the additional chal- pushed them on that. We really
lenge of being forced to com- need to start from scratch, be-
pete with mega producers, who cause the way we price dairy in
have used economies of scale to this country is so convoluted.”
drive prices well below the cost She said the pricing change
of production.” likely wouldn’t have much of
Sen. Gillibrand said the sys- an impact on consumer prices,
tem, which was most recently because most milk is produced
tweaked in the 2018 federal locally and isn’t subject to sig-
Farm Bill, led to $463 million nificant inflationary pressure.
in lost revenue when the CO- “This legislation wouldn’t
VID-19 pandemic hit and some affect (consumer) milk prices,
farmers were forced to dump but it would definitely affect
millions of gallons of their prod- whether our dairies can stay in
ucts. business, and that does impact
“All told, by the summer of milk prices,” she said.
this year, the new formula had
Livingston County News File Photo
already cost dairy farmers more
A farm worker sanitizes the milking parlor at Dairy Knoll Farms, Groveland, in this photograph
taken during the 2017 Farm Fest in Livingston County.
than $750 million in lost in-
come,” she said.
“ It’s a Julie Thing! ”
Committed, Energetic and Loyal
The senator said she prom-
the minimum prices that can share of the money. plus a set dollar amount. ised farmers that she would
be paid to milk producers when Class 1 milk, which is fluid Sen. Gillibrand said that the work to change the federal sys-
they sell to processing and dis- milk meant for drinking, is subcommittee she chairs, the tem, and this bill is the first step
tribution companies, known as priced at the highest level un- Livestock, Dairy, Poultry, Local there.
“milk handlers.” der the FMMO system, while Food Systems and Food Safety She said her first instinct on
Farmers enter into FMMO things like yogurt and cheese and Security Subcommittee, re- this issue was to revert to the
pools, or groups of other milk are considered Class 2 and 3, re- cently held hearings about the pre-2018 pricing system, but
producers, and the producers spectively. Class 4 milk is butter milk pricing system. heard from many farmers that
will share in the proceeds of all and dried products. Class 1 milk “We heard from dairy other changes may be needed
milk sales included in an order. prices are calculated by taking
The regulated minimum prices the monthly average of certain
represent the individual farm’s Class 3 and Class 4 products,
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B6 Thursday, December 23, 2021 THE DAILY NEWS

Swede family protects acreage across 3 towns

Special to The Daily News
Gary and Sharon Swede
and their two sons, Jason and
Ryan, permanently protected
their farmland by placing
three conservation ease-
ments on their Gary Swede
Farms to protect 1,114 acres
of highly productive Genesee
Valley acres from subdivision
and non-agricultural devel-
opment forever.
The conservation project
adds significantly to the work
the Genesee Valley Conser-
vancy has been doing in the
towns of Perry and Leicester,
and is the first conservation
project in the town of Coving-
ton. The farm is directly adja-
cent to three previously pro-
tected farms and adds more
than five miles of protection
along highly scenic roads.
DIVERSITY IS KEY
The Swede family has
worked lands in the Genesee
Valley since 1975 and diver-
sity has been the major factor
in its growth strategy since
the farm’s inception. Its goal
as a farm operation has been
to integrate diverse business
units into its venture to allow
for flexibility in adapting to
the highs and lows so com-
mon in the industry, essen-
tially creating agricultural
hedges against uncertainty.
On top of the variety of veg-
etables they grow for Bondu-
ella USA in Genesee County
— peas, lima beans and
corn — the Swedes also have
a seed dealership, provide
custom farming services to
local growers, grow and store
small commodity grains in a
500,000-bushell grain storage
facility, offer custom planting
and trucking services, and
grow livestock forages that
are sold to local dairy farms.
BEYOND THE SOILS
The farm has incredible
soil quality, a landscape fea-
ture of all farmland projects
the Conservancy engages in
across the watershed. More
than 72% of these lands are
classified as USDA Prime soil.
The soils have helped the
Swedes consistently surpass
most New York State yield
averages in wheat, soybeans,
corn silage, sweet corn and
alfalfa.
In addition to the soils and
genetic material that will
be preserved and reserved
for agriculture through this
project, the lands also con-
tain other important envi-
ronmental features that will
receive added protection. As
part of the project, a Resource
Protection Area will be inte-
grated into the Conservation
easement so as to create a
60-foot riparian buffer im-
mediately adjacent to the
Genesee River, reducing the
likelihood of nearby activities
from having a negative influ-
ence on the river ecosystem
as it drains north to Lake
Ontario. Little Beards Creek
also flows through portions
of the farmland that is just
two-tenths of a mile east of
Lake LeRoy. The farm family
has maintained a buffer along
these lands as well, allowing
for infiltration of surface wa-
ters and groundwaters from
surrounding urban and agri-
cultural run-off.
NOURISHING TODAY
AND TOMORROW
The Swedes have seen
firsthand the many threats
that exist for farmers, one
of which is non-agricultural
development. They have
observed many consumers,
family and friends being re-
moved further and further
from the local food system,
thus unable to see or under-
stand the dire importance
that agriculture has on the
surrounding fabric of life.
They fear a decline in agri-
cultural operations and pro-
ductive land to support them
could create a void in rural
communities that would be
next to impossible to fill.
It was this steadfastness to
farming as a noble, honorable
and necessary profession that
motivated the Swede family
to commit to this conserva-
tion project. Handing the
next generation of Swede
farmers a thriving, protected,
and differentiated agricul-
tural enterprise both excites
and humbles the farm family
as they concluded the four-
year process of permanently
protecting their lands.
This project adds the 104th,
105th and 106th conservation
easements accepted by the
Conservancy.
HOW IT HAPPENED
In 2017, the family at-
tended a farmland protec-
tion workshop hosted by the
Genesee Valley Conservancy
to learn about conservation
easements and the New York
State grant program that
Mark J. Dewey • Kim B. Dewey • Nathan M. Dewey
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fax: 585-548-2743 • e-mail: dew99@juno.com
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funds these efforts.
The family decided to pur-
sue the program and applied
to the local Wyoming County
selection process that had
only recently created a for-
mal mechanism for farms to
apply through. This process
pre-ranks interested farms so
that the competitive grant ap-
plications submitted to New
York state are the best the re-
gion has to offer. During the
2018 ranking, Swede Farms
was ranked as one of the top
farms and the project was
subsequently awarded fund-
ing by New York state and
their land protection project
began.
This project was the result
Celebrating Over
42 Years of Business
Cell: 585.721.8468
ARM EQUIPMENT NEEDS
of a collaboration between
Genesee Valley Conservancy,
Wyoming and Livingston
County, Wyoming and Liv-
ingston County Board of Su-
pervisors, Wyoming County
Agricultural and Farmland
Protection Board, Livings-
ton County Agricultural and
Farmland Protection Board,
the towns of Leicester, Perry,
and Covington, and New York
State Department of Agricul-
ture and Markets.
To-date, the collaborative
effort between Genesee Val-
ley Conservancy and local
partners has resulted in more
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than $27 million invested in
protecting more than 15,900
acres of some of the state’s
most productive agricultural
lands in the Genesee Valley.
–––
Landowners in the Genesee
River watershed interested
in pursuing conservation
options for their property,
be it farmland, habitat or
a potential public nature
preserve, should contact
Genesee Valley Conser-
vancy for more information at
(585) 243-2190 or online at
https://www.geneseevalley-
conservancy.org.
Charter Partner
Nancy M. Crocker
Lic. Real Estate Salesperson
Cell: (585) 314-7982
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7133 W. Main Road • LeRoy, NY 14482
office • (585) 502-5250
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Corn congress
to be virtual
BATAVIA – The annual Corn
Congress will be presented in
a virtual format on Jan. 5 and 6,
2022.
Cornell Cooperative Exten-
sion’s Northwest NY Dairy, Live-
stock and Field Crops Team de-
cided to move to a virtual format
due to the ongoing uncertainty
related to the coronavirus pan-
demic.
The conference will use
Zoom. Pre-Registration is re-
quired. Cost is $45 per person,
includes both days. or $30 per
person, if enrolled in NWNY
Team. Pre-registration is open
on the NWNY Team’s website,
https://nwnyteam.cce.cornell.
edu/.
Programs on Jan. 5 include
“Impacts of Neonics and Nem-
atodes on Corn Insect Man-
agement,” “Understanding
Biologicals for Improved Corn
Management,” and “Tar Spot is
Here! ID and Management Op-
tions.” To view the full confer-
ence agenda and to register on-
line, visit https://nwnyteam.cce.
cornell.edu/.

White Family conserves 208-year-old Groveland farm
Jon, Gail and their son, Mor-
gan, have permanently pro-
tected their Groveland farm-
land by working with Genesee
Valley Conservancy to ensure
their seventh-generation fam-
ily farm remains in agricul-
ture.
Two conservation ease-
ments placed on lands worked
by Highgrove Farm will pro-
tect 1,069 highly productive
Genesee Valley acres from
subdivision and non-agricul-
tural development forever.
BICENTENNIAL
The White family has
farmed in the Genesee Valley
since Jon White’s third great-
grandfather first purchased
107 acres in Groveland in
1813. As Livingston County
celebrates its bicentennial this
year, it is fitting that the White
family has permanently pro-
tected lands their ancestors
began acquiring before the
county was commissioned in
1821, said Benjamin Gajewski,
executive director of the Gen-
esee Valley Conservancy.
The Highgrove conserva-
tion project adds significantly
to the decades of work Gen-
esee Valley Conservancy has
been doing in the Town of
Groveland. The farm is near-
by two previously protected
farms (Edgewood and Merri-
mac Farms) to the north and
adds more than 7 miles of pro-
tection along highly develop-
able roads.
PRIME SOILS
Highgrove Farm has
Mulligan family protects
more acreage in Avon
Three new conservation
easements held by Genesee
Valley Conservancy expand
upon the Mulligan family’s
previous conservation work,
protecting an additional 547
acres of highly productive
farmland in Avon.
In 2010, the Mulligan fam-
ily protected 1,245 acres of
their farm in Avon as one of
the region’s first state-funded
farmland protection projects.
The family has since acquired
additional acreage to expand
their business and have added
protections to these newly-
acquired acres to ensure these
lands will also remain open
and available for agricultural
use for generations to come.
EARLY ADVOCATES
The Mulligan Farm brought
the state’s farmland protection
program to the attention of
Genesee Valley Conservancy.
More than a decade ago, Phil-
lip Mulligan heard about the
state’s effort to protect farm-
land. He learned about fund-
ing to cover the project costs
of farmland protection and
how the state was incentiviz-
ing landowners to protect their
highly productive lands.
The state’s goal to not lose
its most productive and valu-
able soil resources that are
the foundation of New York
State’s agricultural economy
matched with Phillip’s vision
for his family’s farm remaining
intact for his and future gen-
erations.
The Mulligans offered to
forge the path as the first local
project to determine how this
program worked, the benefits
for farmers, and what it could
mean for protecting farmland
in the Genesee Valley.
This initial project was suc-
cessfully completed in 2010.
The result was the protection
of 1,245 acres in Avon.
PRODUCTIVE GROUND
The 2021 Mulligan project
protected 547 acres of land
with 73% USDA Prime soils
and 7% New York State Im-
portant soils, some of the most
productive soils in the state.
The quality of their soils
was a key factor that made the
Mulligan Farm the top-ranked
farm in Livingston County in
The Whites have integrated important soil and water best
practices into their farm management, including countour
planting and strip cropping on a terrace.
outstanding soil quality. More
than 77% of its lands are clas-
sified as USDA Prime soil, the
most productive around. An
additional 7% of their acreage
is classified as New York state
important soil. The farmlands
also contain two perennial
streams that drain directly in-
to Conesus Lake, which is just
more than half a mile from the
farm to the east. The Whites
have integrated important soil
and water best practices into
their farm management on
some of their newer lands, in-
cluding contour planting and
strip cropping on terrace.
These conservation re-
sources were a key factor that
made the farm one of the top
ranked dairy farms in Livings-
ton County for protection in
2018 when it was selected as a
project to move forward.
DEEP ROOTS
One of the driving factors
behind the Whites’ decision
2018 when this project was ap-
proved for protection.
THE FARM
The Mulligan Farm was
started in 1920 by Edward &
Nancy Mulligan. The lands
protected by this project in-
clude lands owned by Jeff
Mulligan and wife Lesa Sobo-
lewski, and Jeff’s brother Phil-
lip Mulligan and wife Susan
Morse. The new acres sand-
wich the original farm in the
middle, directly expanding up-
on the lands protected in 2010
to both the west and east.
The farm milks around 1,350
cows, raises their own heifers,
and produce an average of just
under 29,000 pounds per cow
(compared to the state average
of 23,936 pounds).
In addition to selling milk,
the farm sells semen and em-
bryos from its herd due to the
high-quality genetics they
have cultivated.
The farm also grows corn
for silage and grain, alfalfa and
grass hay for haylage and baled
hay, and wheat for grain and
straw. Yields are consistently
well above regional averages.
THE DAILY NEWS
Genesee Valley Conservancy Photograph
to protect their land was to
honor the legacy of their an-
cestors who for centuries had
been involved in churches,
schools, towns, and agricul-
tural organizations through-
out the community. Jon White
has strived to continue that
ethic of service by chairing the
Livingston County Agricul-
ture and Farmland Protection
Board, as well as serving on the
board of directors and chair
of the Soil and Water Conser-
vation District for more than
three decades prior.
This commitment to
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Licensed RE Salesperson
C (585) 943-5896
11 Megan Drive Geneseo (585) 371-5054
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Lamb Farms, Inc
585-948-5777
lambfarms@hotmail.com
A New York leader in quality
milk production and ag innovation
farming while also supporting
the agricultural community at
large helps ensure the same
agricultural opportunities and
resources that the Whites have
experienced are available to
future generations who can
benefit from the natural assets
in the Genesee Valley, Gajew-
ski said.
This project represents the
seventh and eighth conserva-
tion projects in Groveland.
LOOKING FORWARD
The Whites have been
working to transition be-
tween generations for over a
decade. The farm’s future is
likely that of a diversified cash
crop operation, with the farm
slowly moving away from its
dairy and livestock operations
while pivoting their energy
into more acreages of beans,
wheat, corn and other forages,
food and feed for sale and use
throughout the community.
As Jon looks to eventually
fully retire and pass on the
remaining ownership of the
farm to Morgan, he and his
wife, Gail, will continue to
travel, visit their granddaugh-
ter in California, and run Tem-
ple Hill Bed and Breakfast in
lambfarmsinc.net
There have been many changes over the years, but one thing has not changed. We still strive
to provide you with the best possible equipment, parts, and service in the area. Family owned
and operated since 1972, Alexander Equipment offers new and used equipment including
compact tractors, agriculture tractors, combines, mowers, planters and tillage equipment,
mixers, manure spreaders, rotary cutters, compact equipment and more.
3266 Buffalo Street, Alexander, NY
the village of Geneseo.
GETTING TO THE FINISH LINE
In 2017, the Whites at-
tended a farmland protec-
tion workshop hosted by the
Livingston County Agricul-
tural and Farmland Protec-
tion Board and Genesee Valley
Conservancy to learn about
conservation easements and
the New York state grant pro-
gram that funds these efforts.
The family decided to pur-
sue the program and applied
to the local Livingston County
selection process. This pro-
cess pre-ranks interested
farms so that the competitive
grant applications submitted
84 Avon-Geneseo Rd. Geneseo, NY 14454
Cell: 585-704-2246
Office: 585-243-2643
Fax: 585-243-1838
MarceaTetamore@gmail.com
www.abcolerealestate.com
Lawn Care & Mowing
Trees & Shrubs • Walkways • Retaining Walls
Hardscapes & Landscapes • Snowplowing Too!
(585) 591-2955
Thursday, December 23, 2021 B7
to New York state are the best
the region has to offer. Dur-
ing the 2018 local ranking,
Highgrove Farm was ranked
as one of the top dairy farms.
The project was subsequently
awarded funding by the state
and its land protection project
began.
This project was the result
of a collaboration between
Genesee Valley Conservancy,
Livingston County Board of
Supervisors, Livingston Coun-
ty Agricultural and Farmland
Protection Board, town of
Groveland and New York State
Department of Agriculture
and Markets.
Marcea Tetamore
Licensed Associate Broker
585-704-2246
FREE Estimates
Fully Insured
81 Lake St., LeRoy
We delivery topsoil,
stone & mulch.
768-6578