Goshen Farms Face Common Challenges

The Goshen News recently reached out to several Goshen farmers to learn how their experiences jive with the reported challenges for farmers across the State. We found, perhaps not surprisingly, that farmers in Goshen face many of the same issues encountered by other Connecticut farmers, and have often responded in similar ways.

The issue of an aging farm population and the absence of viable succession plans is a problem faced by many small businesses. It can be particularly difficult for farmers, as caring for livestock is a 24/7/365 responsibility that many are unwilling to shoulder. Accordingly, when farmers reach a certain age or when health issues restrict their abilities to deal with the rigors of farm life, they may find themselves unable or unwilling to continue. Some sell, like Sunshine Acres on E. North Street.  Former owner Sharon Tanner told us that the new owners are not engaging in farming.

Similarly, the former owners of Pie Hill Farm closed their business in 2021. The new owner is a YouTube vlogger operating the Preppy Kitchen channel, which produces semi-weekly instructional videos focused on home-cooking. While the channel is apparently quite successful, as it has more than 3½ million subscribers, it is unclear to what extent farming activities will be pursued on the Pie Hill property. The Goshen News was instructed to email our questions, for which a response would be provided by the owners’ public information personnel, but no further information had yet been received as of the date of our publication deadline.

The Harnett Family Farm, a 59-acre property on Bartholomew Hill Road, also ceased farming operations in 2021. At one time the farm had up to 23 black angus, but have since given up raising animals. The owner suggested that a number of factors led to that decision, including the difficulty of generating a profit, the costs associated with increasingly stringent regulatory controls, and nearby residential development that resulted in complaints from neighbors who were unaccustomed to living near a farm. Last year, the farmland was leased to Green Sky Solar for the purpose of constructing and operating a solar power array. Although the first year’s lease payment was made by the firm, they have yet to start construction and have not advised the Harnetts of their plans.

Beyond the issues of aging and succession, a common problem experienced by Litchfield County farmers is the destructiveness of the growing bear population. Blueberry farmer Carl Contadini, owner of the Old Barn Farm on Bartholomew Hill Road, told us that he sees bears every day in his 8-acre blueberry field. At one point he had to have DEEP come and trap a mother and her 3 cubs. Unlike humans, he explained, who just pick the blueberries, bears will snap off branches, causing a great deal of damage. Last year, a female bear killed 10-20 of his blueberry bushes that were 20 years old.

While Contadini accepts that bears are part of the environment, they are a nuisance to which he believes there is no good solution. “I’m not going to shoot a bear”, he stated. He does use drones to detect their presence in his field and then does his best to chase them out.

Janelle Carroll of Briar Hill Farm on Town Hill Road has also had problems with bears that took some of her chickens and tried to get her goats. The 100-acre farm produces beef, chicken, turkeys, pork, eggs, hay and some vegetables. “The bears have become very bold”, she told us, coming close to the house and the livestock. In addition to the electric fencing for their animals, they have added supplementary fencing to protect their garden. Carroll also mentioned that a neighbor has had to install two-layer electric fencing to protect their apiary.

More devastating even than the bears, however, have been the effects of climate change. As CTMirror reported, Connecticut’s peach crop was destroyed this year by the combination of a warm January, which caused early budding, followed by deep freezing in February, which destroyed the fruit. Contadini confirmed that there will be no fruit from his 19 peach trees this year and the blueberries have not fared much better. “There have been changes in the environment”, he stated. “We tend to get warmer winters but still can get a late frost”. That’s what killed the blueberries last year. In addition, the crops were attacked by spongy moths.

For the Carrolls, last summer’s drought was most problematic. Though the warmer weather can mean a longer growing season, the lack of rain caused an overall drop in their hay production, and they had to buy hay last year for their animals. When there is torrential rain it runs off, rather than soaking in, and the runoff causes erosion. They have had to use home well water to supplement the water supply for their animals, an approach that may not be sustainable.

Farm labor is yet another problem. Contadini said that it was easier to get people to work 10 years ago, but now he has to rely more on mechanical means to maintain his crop. Two of his grandsons help with the mowing, however, and his daughter, who is a horticulturist, also helps out. The Carrolls work their farm themselves, with help from their two daughters, June, age 9, and Jane, age 11, whose chores include collecting eggs.

Farming has never been an easy business and market pressures are a fact of life for small, family farms. “Farm-fresh foods are higher in price”, Janelle Carroll concedes, “but we try to make it affordable for everyday residents”, a goal that is important to them. She believes that Agri-Tourism, like the Annual Goshen Open Farm Tour, can help supplement income. She said that the Farmers Market is also helpful, though it’s only once a week. She also maintains a small farm stand.

Contadini told us that “you have to have a niche in any type of business”, and his is the non-use of pesticides, trying to be as organic as possible. The challenge is that while people want organic fruits, they also want competitive pricing, he said, and it’s hard to compete with imports from South America where labor rates are low.

Considering all the challenges, one might well ask “Why do they keep doing it?”

For Contadini “It’s a labor of love”, he told us. Having retired from the 9 to 5 life of his former business career, he said he wanted to do something more intrinsic. His great grandparents were fruit farmers in Italy and the blueberry farm feels like a return to those roots.

For Janelle Carroll, who is related to the long-time Goshen Kobylenski family, it’s a connection to legacy, as her family has been farming for 4 generations. She also wants to perpetuate “this kind of life”, which she sees as a wholesome way to raise her children. In nearly the same breath she mentions how important it is to her “to maintain the esthetic of what the land looks like”.

What will the future bring for these small, family-owned and operated farms?

Contadini hopes that his grandchildren will take an interest, but accepts that “if they don’t want to do this, so be it”.

Carroll hopes that family farms will be able to sustain themselves, and perhaps even grow in number. She cites the benefits of reduced carbon footprint when food is grown locally, and the benefits to the community. When asked if she hopes her children will continue the family tradition, she answered without hesitation: “Absolutely”. Her older daughter has expressed an interest in becoming a large animal veterinarian, and her younger daughter is interested in plants and botany. She hopes they will be able to bring a new, modern approach.

“They are 5^th generation”, she said, “and it’s a legacy and a point of personal pride”.