by Katie Navarra
Tell your story. Build a community. Send traffic to your website. Social media of all types helps businesses spread the word about the products and services offered. Using social media sites to promote farm products, farmers markets and onsite events can be a cost effective way to increase sales.
Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn are by far the most frequently social media sites mentioned, but Pinterest is becoming an equally important outlet. Continue reading
Category Archives: New England Farm Weekly
Handling large bales safely
by Sally Colby
During baling season, time is at a premium and it’s easy for farmers to skip safety measures. But handling large round bales that weigh 700 to 800 pounds can be a dangerous and potentially deadly task.
Jim Carrabba, agricultural safety specialist with NYCAMH (New York Center for Agricultural Medicine and Health), has some tips for farmers who are working with large round bales.
Performing an operator’s check of all equipment prior to working with bales may prevent injury or even save a life. “We recommend a 360 degree walk around each machine before each use,” said Carrabba. “Check all the hydraulic hoses to make sure that they are not cracked, broken or worn. Look under the machine for puddles of fluid that would indicate a leak or a broken hose. Look for hydraulic fluid on the machine itself that might indicate a leak.” Carrabba explained an injury called high pressure injection injury, which is the result of a hydraulic hose that has a pinhole leak. “It can inject the fluid right into the person’s body. It’s a dangerous injury.” Continue reading
Diemand Farm
by Laura Rodley
What came first, the chicken or the egg? For Wendell, MA residents it was definitely the egg that came first, at the 200 acre Diemand Farm on Mormon Hollow Road, providing eggs for locals and stores since 1936. Currently sisters Anne Diemand-Bucci, Faith Diemand, and their brother Peter Diemand own the farm, selling hand-packed chicken, eggs and free range turkeys all raised with no growth enhancers, additives, hormones or antibiotics. They also sell a vast array of soups and meals to heat up, filling two display refrigerators and five freezers. Continue reading
Wheel-View Farm
by Laura Rodley
The Wheel-View Farm in Shelburne, MA has evolved since its inception in 1896, supporting four farming generations. Formerly the Reynolds Farms, for which their road is named, John and Carolyn Wheeler bought it from her parents, Harry and Betty Gowdy in 1979. They currently supply a niche market for grass-fed beef, using rotational grazing.
They renamed it Wheel-View Farm, due to its 360 degree vista views of Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusetts and Connecticut.
“We started out as a dairy farm. In 1988 we sold the cattle and got other jobs. We rented the fields to other farmers and did haying,” said Carolyn, and maple sugaring. “We couldn’t find anyone to help. We had gone one and half years without a day off, kids getting older, didn’t want to stay doing that.” Utilizing his business management degree, John obtained a teaching certificate, teaching computers at local Mohawk High School. Carolyn earned a Master’s Degree in teaching, and taught at Keene State College in New Hampshire. Continue reading
