257. Suzanne Karreman on the Grass-Roots of Sustainable Dairy Farming

Is it the grass or the genetics that helps most with grass-fed dairy farming? On this episode of the Thriving Farmer Podcast, Michael is joined by Suzanne Karreman of Reverence Farms in North Carolina.  Along with her veterinarian husband, Dr. Hubert, they run a 400-acre, 80-cow grass-fed dairy. Their farm is a thriving polyculture where animals are ‘passionately pastured’ and the land benefits from careful, healing stewardship. Tune in today to hear about Suzanne’s passion and knowledge about grass-fed dairy cows.  In this episode, you’ll hear… How Suzanne got into farming 0:59 How long it took for Suzanne and her husband to go commercial 8:20 What Suzanne’s stance is on whether or not going grass-fed is worth it 15:42 About where the milk from the current herd is going 26:48 What the Reverence Farm team looks like 33:02 What a typical year looks like at Reverence Farms 39:12 About the other enterprises they work on 46:45 What Suzanne’s advice for newer farmers is 49:32   About the Guest: Suzanne and her vet husband, Hubert, run a 400-acre, 80-cow grass-fed dairy in the North Carolina Piedmont. Suzanne’s passion project is breeding Jersey cows to thrive on a pasture-only diet, while also building pastures of sufficient energy to allow the cows to thrive. Pigs, chickens, horses and sheep also graze their pastures, and the farm is also home to 20-40 Jersey bulls that are sent all over the U.S. and into Canada to sire cows that can convert sunshine into butter.  Resources: Website - www.reverencefarms.comFacebook - https://www.facebook.com/reverencefarmsnc/Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/reverence.farms/   The Thriving Farmer Podcast Team would like to thank our amazing sponsor! MyDigitalFarmer.com was created by CSA farmer and marketing specialist Corinna Bench to help farmers learn the marketing fundamentals — so you can stop feeling uncertain, frustrated, guilty, or inadequate when it comes to selling your products. In the My Digital Farmer podcast, you'll be exposed to the fundamentals of marketing theory and practice so you can apply them to your own farm and business. She'll cover marketing funnels, copywriting, website messaging, CSA marketing, lead generation, brand building, social media, customer retention, Facebook ads, sales pages, Facebook groups, YouTube, Instagram, email marketing, and stellar customer service. She also interviews other farmers to find out what’s working (and not working) in farm marketing so you can feel more confident in your ability to convert leads, increase sales, and build a strong brand for your farm. Subscribe to her show at https://www.mydigitalfarmer.com/podcast