Vermont Housing Conservation Board 2005 - Vermont Housing and ...

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VERMONT FARM VIABILITY PROGRAM Bob Eddy photos 28 CHAMPLAIN ORCHARDS Helping an Apple Grower’s Ideas Bear Fruit Bill Suhr began taking a small salary this year. At Champlain Orchards in Shoreham, that’s news: After Suhr bought this landmark, 158-acre property by Lake Champlain at a conserved-farmland price in 1998, he went five years without drawing a salary, despite working nearly endless hours to build a growing new place in the struggling New England apple industry. Suhr’s business plan was developed in 2004 with assistance from VHCB’s Farm Viability Program. Using VHCB-funded consultants from the Intervale Foundation, he was able to fine tune his capital needs and make projections for various product lines. “We were well on our way to having good ideas,” he says, “and they helped us implement them.” “It’s so risky to grow fruit,” adds Suhr, who was just 25 when he bought this place from Wesley and Virginia Larrabee. “Who’s going to stick it out and keep trying” So far, Bill Suhr has. Champlain Orchards’ high-quality McIntosh, Empire, and Red Delicious apples, along with early and old-time varieties, have become popular fixtures at food coops and supermarkets from Brattleboro to St. Albans. The business now boasts “eight fairly full-time employees, of which I would be one,” Suhr quips — “and 16 employees during harvest. Suhr’s marketing ideas are making an impact. Having worked successfully to brand his fruit and deliver it directly to Vermont customers, he’s now investing in diversification, value-added processing, and creative packaging and delivery. Having completed his business plan, Suhr this year paired operating capital with a 6,000 implementation award from the Farm Viability Program to develop a “white room” for peeling apples — the first of its kind in Vermont. At Champlain Orchards, Bill Suhr's espaliered apple trees stretch towards Lake Champlain. Suhr purchased the orchard in 1998. The previous owners, Wesley and Viriginia Larrabee, had conserved the land, which reduced the purchase price to this young farmer.
This joins a mix of new and retrofitted buildings at the Champlain Orchards farmstead that now also house a cider mill, cold storage room, and packing facility. Until now, Vermont apples destined for peeling have been sent to New York state. As Champlain Orchards develops the capacity to store, peel, and process apples on the farm, Suhr is working with state government to promote fresh apple slices for distribution to Vermont schools. “Studies have shown that kids will eat 40 percent more fruit when they consume slices,” he reports. Champlain Orchards is also the sole supplier of peeled slices to the Vermont Mystic Pie Company, an emerging Stowe-based business that has begun to market its top-quality apple pies up and down the East Coast, with the aim of expanding nationally. Champlain Orchards’ sales to Mystic Pie made up just one percent of its business last year, says Suhr — but may account for ten percent of its business in 2006. “I would like to store a variety of fantastic New England apples that would entice people to shop locally year-round,” adds Suhr, who has begun to buy apples from four neighboring producers. “A Vermont grower does not have to sell his whole crop to a broker in New York if he knows that he will have a buyer locally yearround. “There is opportunity out there for all of us, young and old growers. We know how to grow fruit — and we are trying to take each step above that. It takes a lot of coordination, a lot of investment; but in the long haul, we are very self-sufficient.” BROWN FARM, RANDOLPH CENTER (continued from page 27) organic production. Christine was producing vegetables and ornamental plants in a modest-sized greenhouse on the farm. “Our main focus is to produce a quality produce in anything we do,” Christine says. “Our goal was to increase the value of our product, without enlarging our farm or our number of animals. In the first year with the Intervale process, one of our goals was to expand my markets in the greenhouse business. “I’d done that business for a couple of years, and I knew the piece I was missing was marketing,” she says. “Typically, that’s the skill farmers lack. We’ve been pretty good at tracking our financials, but there’s always room for improvement — and with the transitioning to organic, it’s a whole different ballgame.” Working with the Intervale and NOFA-VT, the Browns created a business plan and a marketing plan, coupled with production and financial analysis. The plans called for a second greenhouse, so that Christine could expand her ornamentals business and take advantage of a local demand for early-season vegetables. Cost overruns had kept the Browns from completing the full greenhouse that Christine needed for optimum produce quality. This year, the family was granted an Implementation Award, a new feature of the Farm Viability Program. “The grant helped us finish raised beds, to start the early vegetables this coming spring,” Christine says. “It also enabled us to put in insula- The Browns were named 2005 Farm Family of the Year by the Vermont Farm Bureau. tion, to reduce energy costs, and drip irrigation to reduce labor costs.” Her plants are now sold both on-farm and through the Hanover Food Co-op stores in Hanover and Lebanon, N.H. “Farming’s such a labor-intensive operation that there’s not always time to explore the skills you need to make improvements,” Christine reflects. “The thing I like about the Viability Program is that it’s oneon-one. You can formulate a plan that’s custom-tailored, so I think the money is more efficient in helping, and the long-term effect is better. “Now,” she adds, “I can concentrate on quality.” That focus has not gone unrecognized: In 2005, the Browns were named Farm Family of the Year by the Vermont Farm Bureau. 29
Page 1 and 2: 2005 Annual Report to the General A
Page 3 and 4: james h. douglas governor State of
Page 5 and 6: statutory mandates that require per
Page 7 and 8: in the marketplace, and for homes b
Page 9 and 10: documents. But an applicant’s ent
Page 11 and 12: the 1906-vintage edifice stands out
Page 13 and 14: Bob Eddy photos Laurie Webster, who
Page 15 and 16: “These are people who are very en
Page 17 and 18: HABITAT FOR HUMANITY Hard-Earned Ho
Page 19 and 20: “Owning a home isn’t just luck.
Page 21 and 22: portation,” said Brenda Torpy, di
Page 23 and 24: So Jon and Lise Yandow, whose seven
Page 25 and 26: Addison Vermont Land Trust photos a
Page 27 and 28: “Watching the O’Connell family
Page 29: Bob Eddy “Farming is such a labor
Page 33 and 34: CROSS VERMONT TRAIL A Trail to Conn
Page 35 and 36: Liz Thompson/The Nature Conservancy
Page 37 and 38: HISTORIC PRESERVATION A New Role fo
Page 39 and 40: Bob Eddy photos England what became
Page 41 and 42: VERMONT COMMUNITY STEWARDSHIP PROGR
Page 43 and 44: VERMONT LEAD-BASED PAINT HAZARD RED
Page 45 and 46: Housing Awards July 2004 -June 2005
Page 47 and 48: Housing Awards July -December 2005
Page 49 and 50: Conservation Awards July 2004 -June
Page 51 and 52: Conservation Awards July 2004 -June
Page 53 and 54: Conservation Awards July -December
Page 55 and 56: Partners in Project Development Jan
Page 61 and 62: Revenues $22,486,033 Interest Incom
Page 63 and 64: PROJECT AWARDS BY COUNTY 1987-2005

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