-Cheese.

Cheese.

-Okay, great.

-All right.

-Do you want to tell me -about the farm?

-What's the name of your farm?

-What's your last name?

-Nelson.

Nelson.

-And so your farms are Nelson -Farms.

-Yeah.

-Hello, everyone.

-Today I am at Nelson Farms, -which is in Irisburg, -way up in the Northeast -Kingdom, -just south of Newport.

-I've been coming out here -since summertime -to tell the story -of the Nelson family.

-Now, the Nelson family, -They live out here -and they operate -two businesses.

-Currently -there are dairy farms.

-Hi, I'm Dylan Nelson.

-I'm one of the owners here -at Nelson Farms Inc. -We manage over 2600 cows, -both conventional and -!organic, and we crop about 5000 -total acres between -the two dairies.

Cool.

-This family farm -was started by my grandfather -a long time ago.

-We're -aiming to keep that going.

-And hopefully the future -generations to come -are harvesting milk as well.

-Hi, I'm Meg, I'm -married to Dylan.

-We've been married -for eight years, -and I've always been farming.

-And last year, -we had the opportunity -to get into the organic side -of dairying.

-So I ran our organic division -just across the street from, -Dylan's facility.

-Why take the steps to go so -!far to build this new facility?

-So, we're coming out -of a long history of my -my grandfather started, -with 13 cows a long time ago.

-and over the years, -some of the, the technology -progressed so much, -and we were milking on -many facilities, -to accomplish the same thing -that one could.

-!So our goal was to centralize, -gain on, -on a lot of efficiencies, -whether it be labor, -technology, machinery, -and try to push -through into the future.

-Why is that?

-Well, it's because -we're being pushed that way.

-I'd say, -we have to compete with -and sadly with our neighbors.

-And we also have to compete -with, with the Midwest -and the West and, to sell -a product that we don't -have control over the price.

-And, -the expression -is we buy -every everything at retail -and sell everything -at wholesale.

-So we have to get bigger -just to stay alive.

-Simple economics.

Yeah.

-It's astonishing.

-Honestly.

-It it leaves me a little bit -lost for words in terms of -how to explain -the amount of technology -that's happening here?

-Dairy historically has been -an incredibly labor -intensive business.

-You need someone to milk -all the cows.

-If you have a farm -in the Northeast Kingdom, -finding -labor can be very difficult.

-So going high tech -and using a milking parlor -like this is an extraordinary -leap in productivity.

-Every single cow wears -an all flex tag.

-You see the blue -around their neck.

-and it's a simple collar.

-It's an accelerometer.

-The same thing -that's in your smartphone.

-And it detects movement.

-And there's, -there are certain -algorithms that, as a cow -moves her head, one way -or how much -she moves through the barn.

-So that really just maximizes -your ability -to take care of the cows -health -!at the individual level.

Yeah.

-The beauty of this system is -that we're able to work -with the cows, -catch them -quickly off of milking, -!work with them and return them -back to their homes.

-A lot of this technology -!allows us to manage individual -cows on a large scale, -but also leave them alone -and just let them be cows.

-In the conversation -of dairy and dairy farming -we often get this narrative -that gets pitched as is -if organic is somehow -better than conventional.

-Now the Nelson -family operates -two farms, one conventional -right here -and the other organic, -which is just down the road.

-It's the same family, -the same philosophy.

-They care about their cows.

-They care about the land.

-They care about the product.

-!They care about the consumers.

-So this is our organic dairy, -where we follow a different -set of guidelines and rules.

-and we're certified -for the organic market.

-So all of the feed -and, and milk this produce -!here is all certified organic.

-So this provides a little bit -of a, a different product -to more of a niche market, -which is different than what -we do on the big farm.

-And the perception around -organic and conventional -are that they're very -different markets.

-And obviously -the certifications -and the requirements -are different.

-But for one, the same family -runs both, you know, -what's that like -and what's the philosophy.

-And, you know, the philosophy -for us wasn't really -about the market so much as -that it was more -about the consumer.

-We see that -!we have all these choices when -you go into the supermarket.

-And if we can bring you -both, and, -and learn about a new way -of doing things for -you, was our, -thoughts going into this?

-I got to say, really, -it's very different, -but there's a lot of overlap.

-So on both facilities, -we use technology -that monitors -the cows on their rumination -and their activity.

-On both, were getting -daily data on each cow -so were managing cows -on an individual basis.

-And we're leaving them alone -if they don't need anything.

-So it's huge because -we can give therapies, -we can get fluids, -we can do other things -that have nothing to do with -spending money on drugs.

-Yeah.

-If you're thinking -about maximizing -output with minimal inputs, -the conventional dairy -is the way to go.

-But if you're -more concerned about methods, -probably the organic, -but they're both safe.

-They both provide a different -option for the consumer.

-We take pride in care in -how we handle all of our milk -and my family -we drink the raw, -organic milk from this dairy -here, and I would do the same -from the big farm.

-It's just simply, -this farm's a little closer.

-One of the really cool -!things about the Nelson family -is just how much the Nelsons -let their boys be kids -like, barefoot out on the -farm, in the calf pen, -running around, -getting dirty.

-Farmers being farmers, kids -being kids -raised out in the country.

-What else could you want?

-Can you talk about, -if you're willing, being -a mom, having three boys.

-And what that's like -letting them run around?

-Yeah, sure.

-so I grew up on a family -farm, having the boys, -the three boys.

-And we have another baby -on the way.

-I just love seeing them run -around and play in the dirt -and get dirty and not worry -about immunities and such.

-They drink raw milk, -and they just - -its awesome.

-They'll they'll come in and -they'll help me feed calves.

-They know how to do stuff -already.

-They're five, four and two.

-So it's just really cool -to see.

-Yeah, yeah.

-And it's certainly busy.

-I do a lot of my day happens -in the very early morning -and then in the middle -of the day during nap, -but it's, -it's definitely a fun time.

-Cool.

Yeah.

-My goal, -Raising children that have -an appreciation for the land.

-And a really core knowledge -of where food comes from.

-it's really important to me.

-And then as far as this long -term legacy, I just.

-I want to leave everything -better than how I found it.

-I hope our legacy -and our our hard work, -spans to the next generations -to come and builds -a, a profitable business -that our kids can be proud -to run and own and -and continue to deliver -a high quality product -which is nature's -most nearly perfect food.

-I hope that -!the story of the Nelson family -and how they operate, -both a conventional dairy -and an organic dairy, -helps to illustrate that -!these are not wildly divergent -philosophies.

-Rather, these two methods -are simply different ways -by which dairy farmers -are working to adapt -and survive -in this crazy industry -that dairy has become -farming has always been -an immensely difficult -labor of love, -and my hope -!is that by telling this story, -the general public can have -a deeper understanding -and appreciation for the work -the dairy farmers -put in to keeping -not only the herds healthy -!and their businesses thriving, -but also being custodians -of the environment -and also trying every day -to continue -delivering high quality, -nutritious product for us.

-One of the things I want to -make clear to anyone watching -is that, -you know, this whole time -that I have been coming up -to visit with, the Nelsons, -they have never once -asked me to cut the camera -on anything -they have not said.

-Oh, please -don't film over here.

-Please don't show this.

-And they are complete -transparent about the way -that they operate, -both the conventional -and the organic.

-And there is such a obvious -sense of pride in their work -and a immense sense -of accountability -to their process -!and the way that they operate.

-And it gives me -a lot of confidence in that.