Allard Family Farm

Farming Experience

Farming experience

3-5 years of experience

Type of farming experience

Worked on a farm
Agricultural degree
Something else/additional (describe below)

Description of farming experience

My background is as a diesel mechanic and technician. My wife went to the University of Connecticut for animal science and worked in the University's barns managing dairy and beef cattle, swine, sheep and poultry.

Name of your farming operation or where you are currently farming

Connecticut

Links to farm business website, social media, etc.

https://www.allardfamilyfarm.com

Farming Plans

State(s) of interest

Connecticut
Maine
Massachusetts
New Hampshire
Vermont

Minimum acreage desired

50

Maximum acreage desired

500

Arrangements desired

Purchase or own

Arrangement description

We are looking for a place to expand our farm and call our home. We have been leasing for the past few years and want to put down roots somewhere else.

Farming practices description

All of our farming practices follow those of Joel Salatin a well-known regenerative grass farmer. We rotate our animals' location so the land can rest, the manure can fertilize the land and the animals can get away from parasites that may infect them.

Farming enterprises description

Our main enterprises will continue to revolve around livestock. We have begun this with chickens but would like to work in pigs, lamb and ultimately beef. We would like to incorporate forestry as silvopasture harvesting timber to sell as necessary. Vegetable farming will take place on a small scale providing staples.

Description of infrastructure needed

Ideally to get started a house of some kind would be nice to live on property and at least one outbuilding to house animals. If no house or outbuilding we may still be able to work something out.

Business plan or business concept

allard-family-farm-business-plan-1.pdf

Business planning description

We have developed a business plan for what we have done thus far and where we want to go. It is an evolving work of progress like a resume, always being tweaked.

Additional Information

Ben established Allard Family Farm to bring people hearty, healthy quality food that is produced in a manner that is kind to the environment caring for the soils, air, wildlife, waterways, etc.. We acknowledge that we are using land that needs to be taken care of because it really belongs to future generations. We assume the role of stewards to maintain and make improvements so the land can remain prosperous for years and years to come. We both believe that working with nature is a key to being successful in our agricultural economy and day in age. All our livestock are rotationally grazed from the chickens and turkeys to our cattle and sheep, this is a very important practice to us. We strive to imitate nature and let our animals live out their lives as nature intended which means moving to a fresh patch of grass each and every day. We wholeheartedly believe as Joel Salatin does to “respect and honour the pigness of the pig and the chickenness of the chicken. That means not confining them in a house with hundreds of others.” We want customers to know how their food is raised, who the farmers are who bring them this nourishment and help to educate consumers to see and question practices surrounding products that can be bought and consumed from elsewhere. We hope we can find what we are looking for in New England to expand our farm, raise our family and call home.