A gripping and witty exploration of the economic forces that make it challenging for small dairy farms to survive.
 
The dairy business is at the heart of the culture and economy of Vermont, just as it is in many other states. That fact meant little to Kirk Kardashian until he started taking his daughter to daycare at a dairy farm a few miles from his Vermont home. The farm had been owned by the same family for generations but struggled to make ends meet in a market where retail milk prices have held steady for decades while the prices paid to farmers have plummeted. Suddenly, the abstractions of economics and commodities markets were replaced by the flesh and blood of a farm family whom he greeted every day.
 
In the tradition of Michael Pollan and Eric Schlosser, Kardashian asks whether it is right that family farmers in America should toil so hard, produce a food so wholesome and so popular, and still lose money. His investigation uncovers the hidden forces behind dairy farm consolidation and explains why milk—a staple subject to both government oversight and industry collusion—has proven so tricky to stabilize, even as scores of small dairy farms close. This new edition brings the story up to date, as farmers grapple with an ever-changing landscape that includes shifting consumer preferences, immigration issues, climate change, and bird flu.

Take a trip to a real-life dairy farm and learn about cows, calves, and where the tasty dairy products we love to eat and drink come from.

Mary Lewandowski helps her family at their dairy farm in Wisconsin. Her great-great-great-grandparents founded the farm more than a hundred years ago. Today, the farm has some fifty cows that must be fed, milked, and kept happy and healthy. Corn and alfalfa need to be planted and harvested for their feed. It’s all a lot of work for Mary, but she loves her cows, and they provide us with milk to drink, cheese and ice cream to eat, and many other delicious dairy treats.

Welcome to My Farm is a fun and illuminating look at farm life in the heart of America’s Dairyland. Aimed at young readers age four and up, the book shares fascinating facts about dairy cows and the crops that farmers grow. Presenting a day in the life of a small dairy farm, Welcome to My Farm reveals the many ways that Mary takes care of her cows and how farms help feed our communities. Readers will also meet cuddly kittens and Mary’s two collies, Buffy and Buddy!

Young readers will find the answers to many common dairy-farm questions, such as:

• How do you milk a cow?
• What types of food are made from cow’s milk?
• How much does a cow eat and drink in a day?
• How much does a calf weigh when it’s born?
• What types of crops do dairy farmers grow?
• What do farmers use tractors for?
• What happens in a silo?

Illustrated with dozens of color photos, Welcome to My Farm helps young readers understand and appreciate how dairy farms work and the central role that agriculture plays in the food we eat.