Paul-lin Dairy

Paul, Linda, Ellen and Claire Stanley.

Paul-Lin Dairy in Vermont is home to 30 registered, pure-bred Jersey cows and 30 young stock, but no tractors or other mechanical farming equipment. "Only a hay elevator to transport the square bales of alfalfa to the loft of the dairy barn," says farmer Linda Stanley.

During the warm months, the Stanleys use an intensive rotational grazing system; the cows move from one fenced paddock to another, enjoying fresh grasses daily. The farm is only 38 acres in size, with steep, rocky pastures that aren't good for growing hay. The family buys all its feed for the winter months, and the cows make daily trips to the barnyard while Linda, Paul, Ellen and Claire take care of daily farm chores. Each cow is milked individually in her own barn stall with a portable milking machine.

Since July 1, 1985, Linda has managed the dairy, while her husband Paul works off the farm as a certified crop consultant for more than 30 area farms. "Our daughters have grown up in the barn. They are animal lovers and give lots of gentle attention to the calves. This is a way of life that can't be matched. Miraculously, it's worked for us."

Now that everything we make is organic, Paul-Lin Dairy no longer provides us with milk. But they're still members of St. Albans Cooperative Creamery, with whom we worked for almost two decades. And, like all family farms, Paul-Lin Dairy helps preserve our nation's rural beauty and farming heritage. We're happy to have our friends continue as part of our Have-a-Cow program.