ABOUT
Acorn hill farm is a small family farm and creamery in the Hudson Valley/Catskill region of New York State. We raise nubian dairy goats (OK so we have two alpines we added to the herd this fall) using organic management practices. Goats are interesting in that they browse like deer rather than graze like cattle or sheep. The things goats eat sometimes can be amazing…. for example wild rose brambles are one of their favorite things and they readily eat poison ivy. Goats have been and still are used to clear fields for other grazing animals and are able to clear large areas in a short time. So goats are well suited to living on the bottom of a mountain. Our herd is fed a small amount of organic grain in addition to browse and local hay. We use only herbal wormer preperations and treat illness and injury first with homeopathic and herbal substances and only when all else fails do we use conventional medications. We firmly believe in the organic approach but we will not allow any animal to suffer.
Using the milk produced on the farm we make a variety of fresh and aged cheeses, yogurt, fudge, and soap which we sell at local farmer’s markets. Up until last year the farmer’s market season was just that, a season but last year a winter farmer’s market was born. That market proved to be quite sucessful and others will be taking place throughout the area opening up a whole new way of thinking about dairying in a temeperate climate. Typically our goats are in season in the late summer through the fall and give birth in the spring. This means there are a couple of months each winter when we are not milking the goats and we all get to take a rest but it seems that will have to change if the farmer’s market season is going to be a year round season. This raises several management challenges since the goats are naturally seasonal milkers. There is plenty to think about and plan for but for now we are still breeding for spring kidding and following the natural cycle of our animals.
2008 was the first year we sold meat at market. Goat meat is a very lean and healthy red meat alternative and with the added benefits of organic practice we hope this will be a successful addition to what Acorn Hill has to offer. Being a small operation combined with the yearly kidding that produces the milk we need leaves us with many decisions about the kids born here. Most buck kids will be raised for meat while does will either be retained as future milkers or sold to to other farms.