Vermont Land Trust Press Release - Farm Conservation Helps Young Farmer Buy His Own Farm

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: August 7, 2007

Farm Conservation Helps Young Farmer Buy His Own Farm

With rising land values it’s getting harder every day for young farmers to buy their own farm. But, Ben Williams, a 27-year-old dairy farmer did just that with the help of Mike and Carolyn Hill and the Vermont Land Trust.

After 18 years on their scenic farm, located in Fairfield and St. Albans, the Hills wanted to retire. They knew they could get more by selling their farm to a non-farm buyer; however, they preferred to sell it to Ben and see it stay in agriculture. Ben and his partner Hillary Stone were managing a dairy heifer business at his parents’ farm. When presented with the opportunity to buy the neighboring Hill farm, Ben jumped at the chance. “I always admired the place,” said Ben. “And, it meant something to Mike to have it conserved and to stay a farm.”

With support from the Freeman Foundation, the Vermont Land Trust worked with Ben to conserve the farmland by purchasing the development rights through the use of a conservation easement. The sale of the easement gave Ben the capital he needed to finance his new 153-acre farm. Ben will continue to own, and manage, the land and can sell their property; however, the conservation easement permanently remains on the property.

“I gave the land trust a call and they came right up and we got the application in; the whole process went very fast,” Ben said. “It was the only way we could do it. It was the difference between me owning a farm and not owning a farm.”

Ben will be using the fields to support a new organic dairy operation. He has 110 certified organic cows, of which 60 are milking cows. He also has 40 conventional replacement heifers. In addition to having 62 acres of agriculturally significant soil, the farm abuts the Fairfield Swamp Wildlife Management area, which has several rare species and natural communities.

"Conserving the land is important, and keeping the land productive is critical to Vermont’s future,” said Al Karnatz of the Vermont Land Trust. “That’s why assisting a farm transfer is especially important. Ben is an ambitious, capable young farmer and I'm sure he and Hillary will make good use of the land."

For more information, please contact:
Allen Karnatz , Vermont Land Trust Champlain Valley Co-Director (802) 434-3079 or
Elise Annes, Vice President for Community Relations (802) 223-5234

The Vermont Land Trust is a statewide, member-supported, nonprofit land conservation organization. Since 1977, the Vermont Land Trust has permanently conserved more than 1,400 parcels of land covering 470,000 acres, or about eight percent of the private, undeveloped land in the state. The conserved land includes more than 630 working farms, hundreds of thousands of acres of productive forestland, and numerous parcels of community lands. This conservation work changes the lives of families, invigorates farms, launches new businesses, maintains scenic vistas, encourages recreational opportunity, and fosters a renewed sense of community. For more information or to become a member, contact: Vermont Land Trust, 8 Bailey Avenue, Montpelier, VT 05602, (802) 223-5234.