Bootstrap Dairy Farmer Video Release!
The Bootstrap Dairy Farmer Videos are finally here! In 2013, five young women chronicled their experiences of starting dairy farms on our Bootstrap Blog. In the long-awaited final installment of the series, three of the women take us to their farms in short films. Watch now and see how these women overcome icy temps, broken […]
Is social media working for your farm?
Even if we may prefer the company of cows or the peace of a field to the company of others, marketing is an undeniable part of operating a successful small farm or business. Farm conferences around the country now regularly offer marketing and social media training specifically to help nudge the more introverted among us […]
BOOTSTRAP @ THE GOLDEN YOKE – MARKETING & SALES
By Laura Ginsburg of The Golden Yoke For marketing, like the rest of our farm venture, we are starting small with big visions for the future. We currently have a logo, a Facebook page, a domain name, and the makings of a Kickstarter campaign. We have visions of shirts, stickers, ice cream cartons, a scoop […]
Bootstrap @ The Golden Yoke – Pasture Management
Pasture management in Montana is not just about building fence and moving cows. First and foremost it is about irrigation. Because of our arid climate we rely heavily on irrigation water, which is dependent on mountain snow pack. Every winter farmers and ranchers in the west look to the mountains as they plan for the […]
BOOTSTRAP @ THE GOLDEN YOKE – BUILDING EXPERIENCE
By Laura Ginsburg of The Golden Yoke I remember hearing a statistic once, that to be an expert at something you had to do that activity for 10,000 hours. Connie and I tried to calculate all of the hours we have stood behind or next to a cow (or under during some unfortunate events), and […]
BOOTSTRAP @ THE GOLDEN YOKE – EQUIPMENT AND CAPITAL
By Laura Ginsburg of The Golden Yoke This past month has been a big one for decision-making at The Golden Yoke. Unlike the other Bootstrap farmers, we are not currently milking any cows, do not have any facilities, and do not have any real equipment to speak of. And having just finished grad school, we […]
BOOTSTRAP @ THE GOLDEN YOKE – ON BREEDS
By Laura Ginsburg of The Golden Yoke Montana is considered a fluid milk state, which means that one of the primary goals for dairy farmers is to breed cows that produce a lot of milk without much regard for components. Across the state, the vast representation of cows are of the black and white variety, […]
BOOTSTRAP @ THE GOLDEN YOKE – Follow along with our first year
By Laura Ginsburg of The Golden Yoke Hi! My name is Laura Ginsburg. Connie and I are starting to build our dairy, the Golden Yoke. We are the first new dairy in Montana in over two decades. Not only will we be the first new dairy in many years, we will be the only grass-based, […]