PHARSALIA – If people paid as much attention to what they ate as dairy farmer Brian Newton pays attention to what he feeds his award-winning dairy herd, perhaps everybody would be more healthy.
And that special mixture of hay, grain and silage (fermented corn or grass) takes this sixth generation agribusinessman between two and three hours every morning to concoct – every cow’s 100 pounds of daily feed is carefully considered.
“Our cows are pampered,” said Newton of Balsam View Dairy Farm. “They sleep on rubber beds, have fans, sprinklers when they want to take a shower, good nutrition, clean water, fresh air, a good vaccination program and basically lounge around in their comfortable environment.”
And a stress-free life is what helps cows produce a high caliber product, he said. Balsam View’s 200 dairy cows produce milk that has been recognized at the state, local and national level for being of the highest quality for more than a quarter of a century.
In fact, Balsam View is currently recognized for innovation and efficiency throughout the dairy industry worldwide. They have adopted practices such as intensive grazing which is a New Zealand-based system of reduced equipment costs, optimized grassland management and low carbon footprint. The farm is also energy efficient and recognized for conservation practices of both land and water.
Among its many achievements over the years, Balsam View helped to in advance the nation’s telecommunications system back in the late 1950s when Mrs. Orton (Orah) Newton controlled a radio signal from the farm for Bell Telephone Laboratories. The signal helped researchers understand more about over-the-horizon radio relay.
Those achievements and many, many more will be celebrated this Saturday down on the farm as a quadruple family reunion pushing upwards of 175 members promises to commemorate the farm’s bicentennial anniversary. The Chenango County Board of Supervisors acknowledged the milestone at a brief ceremony earlier this month, where Town of Pharsalia Supervisor Dennis Brown pointed out that the Newton family was among the first homesteaders that settled Pharsalia, back when Thomas Jefferson was president.
“It’s an honor to be part of this family. We’ve been looking forward to this day for many, many years,” said Brian, in receiving the county board’s commendation.
Daniel Newton purchased the farm’s first 100 acres from Col. John Randall, the original settler of the Town of Pharsalia, in 1809. Today, Brian and his four siblings’ children represent the family’s seventh generation. The homestead and herd, including 162 young stock, can be found inside some 600 acres nestled between county Routes 7 and 10.
The log cabin has been replaced over time by a five-bedroom house. Both were hand hewn - as were the farm’s original barns (portions of which still stand) - from native hemlock by jig saws and plenty of hard labor.
“It’s all homegrown,” said Brian’s father Harold, who purchased the farm from his mother, Orah, in 1962. “Everything was built using whatever you grew here. Today, they say you shouldn’t build with hemlock, but look at them standing.”
The number of outbuildings has multiplied from one to more than a dozen and the herd has expanded from 26 to 200. And as the farm has grown, so has the size of the equipment, from horse-power to tractors and from hay stacks steeped by forks to bales that are formed in enclosed wagons, put into silos and then transferred into plastic bags.
Likewise, the farm has advanced from producing just enough to feed the family to 8 to 9 tons of milk a day. Newton’s award winning product is collected in 18-wheel tanker trucks that regularly pull in and out of the farm and head for the Kraft processing plant in Walton.
“There isn’t a moment’s peace,” said Harold’s daughter, April Newton Dolan of Syracuse. “It’s busier now than when I grew up.”
April has been gathering artifacts and scrapbooks for the celebration on Saturday. While peering at a graying photo of her grandfather as a child pouring milk into cans under the watchful eye of his mother, April’s young daughter, Lydia said she really doesn’t think much about how old the farm is until she sees pictures of the house just the way it was and her ancestors standing in exactly the same place.
“All of our kids and grandkids have built upon the history of the farm for various school assignments,” said the farm’s present matriarch, Donna. “That’s how they’ve learned. Each one adds a little bit. Once you see the picture of your relatives and the way the farm looked, you understand.”
Everyone pulling for the same cause is what’s kept the farm viable and the family intact, according to Harold. However, he admits that it’s been especially tough going lately for dairy farmers.
“There has to be a higher price for milk if we are going to remain in business,” he said.
A century ago, people were producing for their own families, Brian points out, but today, only 1 percent of the population is producing for everyone.
The loss of dairy farms has “a huge magnifying affect,” he said.
“Look at it everywhere ... you lose your farms and you lose your communities, and you lose your industries.”
“We need to keep good food in this country because cheaper food from China is of poorer quality. Many people don’t realize how safe our food is,” he said.
Harold said he is most proud that Balsam View’s herd was selected to by colleges and universities as a model for teaching young farmers. It hosted participants in the 2005 Northeast Region of the North American Intercollegiate Dairy Challenge, and currently hosts research through Cornell University.