Champlain Valley Farmer Coalition urges collaborative approach on water quality, neonics, labor and market access

At a meeting of the Vermont Senate Agriculture Committee, the Champlain Valley Farmer Coalition outlined immediate concerns for regional farmers, including pauses in federal and state conservation funding, the availability of seed following recent neonics restrictions, mounting labor shortages, and market consolidation among milk buyers.

The coalition, represented by Vijay Naswick, executive director of the Champlain Valley Farmer Coalition, told the committee the group has roughly 200 members and about 130 farms and focuses on three main programs: water-quality work, a high-school workforce-development program, and a Dairy Innovation Center cohort for young farmers. "How do we make sure of addressing water quality and how do we do it in a collaborative way?" Naswick said. He told members the coalition wants to work with both the Agency of Natural Resources and the Agency of Agriculture to achieve water-quality goals.

Those programs matter, coalition members said, because recent pauses or reductions in funding for conservation programs have put ongoing projects on hold. "A lot of that money has dried up or has been paused, and that puts projects on pause as well," Naswick said, adding that the consequence is delayed work on practices that have improved Lake Champlain Basin water quality over the last decade.

Market access and consolidation were raised as an economic threat to smaller producers. Ramsey Malich, president of the coalition and a diversified farmer in Cornwall, said Vermont effectively has two dominant milk buyers. "There's basically only two milk buyers in this state," Malich said, naming DFA and AgriMark (Cabot) as the large purchasers. He and other producers urged state action to attract processors and buyers to Vermont so smaller farms would have options other than switching cooperatives or exiting the business.

Goat and specialty dairy producers described related constraints. Holly Mangich, owner-operator of Tufts Crossing Farms in Orwell, said her farm received multiple grants from the Northeast Dairy Business Innovation Center (NEDBIC) to expand bulk-tank and parlor capacity and to test extended lactation. She said the grants carried a 25 percent match and that one parlor expansion required a separate construction loan. "I can get over 25 goats through an hour, which has just changed my life and made it possible for the farm to continue on," Mangich said. Mangich and others warned that a single large buyer in a niche market limits the state's ability to scale.

Farmers also described infrastructure and environmental-practice needs. John Lucas, treasurer of the coalition and a dairy farmer in Orwell who milks about 300 cows, described projects to improve feed and leachate storage. He said he was pursuing a leachate-collection pond, and that some conservation cost-share programs helped but could not cover all construction costs. Lorenzo Whitcomb, a grain farmer in Williston, described flooding on land near the Winooski River and said crop-storage capacity constrained harvests during the year.

Several speakers addressed regulation and enforcement. Members expressed a preference that the Agency of Agriculture continue to regulate farm practices rather than a federal or out-of-state regulator taking primary enforcement responsibility. Naswick said the coalition has had a productive relationship with state agencies and wants to maintain a collaborative approach. Lorenzo Whitcomb and others said they supported enforcement of existing rules but emphasized the need for inspectors to understand farm practices and for clear documentation of required practices so farms can demonstrate compliance in the event of litigation.

The group discussed the 2024 New York law restricting neonicotinoid-treated seed and the potential downstream effects in Vermont. Farmers said they do not yet know whether seed companies will supply the same varieties of untreated seed and voiced concern about whether the exemption process for treated seed will be responsive enough in urgent agronomic situations. "There are many, many varieties of neonic seeds that farmers used, and we don't know what quantity, what varieties would be available," Naswick said.

Labor shortages and a possible guest-worker program also drew attention. Members said labor stress was high and raised the idea of studying state-supported guest-worker models that mirror federal H-2A structures while recognizing federal jurisdiction over immigration. The committee chair indicated plans to explore a guest-worker proposal and to continue conversations with stakeholders.

Speakers noted other policy and market developments affecting farm income. Committee members referenced the total maximum daily load (TMDL) work on Lake Champlain and an ongoing Conservation Law Foundation (CLF) lawsuit that prompted renewed federal attention to permits; coalition members said they want a predictable inspection and documentation system to reduce litigation risk. The chair also discussed recent federal milk-pricing changes under the federal order that could raise the price paid to dairy producers if higher class prices are used in the formula.

The committee and the coalition agreed to continue conversations. Committee members invited individual meetings and additional testimony from seed companies, program administrators, and other stakeholders. Vijay Naswick closed by offering the coalition's office as a contact point and encouraging committee members to visit farms and meet one-on-one.