All That’s Dairy is Gold

Story and photos by Michelle Kunjappu

As charming as the little two-room structure is, it just wasn’t cutting it anymore. In fact, the tiny former doctor’s office at Chesapeake Gold Farms, where Wes Miller, the sixth generation to operate a dairy on that farm, and his wife Amanda began selling their dairy’s valueadded products, just started to get a little cramped.

The farm’s employees were packing boxes on the same podium that they were using to ring customers up and Amanda was making regular treks to a nearby walkin refrigerator to fill customer orders, so the couple decided to make a change. A $10,000 prize from Farm Credit’s inaugural Farmers on the Rise award program paved the way for the farm’s most recent acquisition — a large mobile jobsite trailer.

After some good old fashioned elbow grease and a fresh makeover, the trailer will house a small office, packaging area, and a storage area for the dry goods and packing supplies. “The plan was to get a shed or trailer where we could be behind the scenes, packing for retailers and events,” says Amanda, “and have the two-room ‘cheese hut’ remain the point of purchase area for customers who come to the farm for Chesapeake Gold cheese, butter, yogurt, and beef.”

Looking down the road, the couple hopes to construct an on-farm creamery and possible retail space, however “we needed something to fill the gap,” says Wes, who has been managing the dairy since 2012.

The addition is part of the Millers’ effort to help the family farm remain profitable and productive in the coming years. The home farm includes 250 acres plus an additional 1,000 acres they’ve purchased and to other acreage that the family rents to raise the operation’s corn, soybeans, small grains, and hay they sell to local horse farms. Amanda has also begun growing and selling cut flowers on the property.

The milking herd includes 180 cows and heifers made up of mostly Holsteins and Guernsey cows.

Farm Credit has been a part of the family for more than 30 years, as the institution financed small equipment loans before taking over the mortgage last spring “because they have competitive rates and valuable staff,” says Amanda. “It’s nice to pick the phone up when you have questions or problems, as opposed to other lenders where you’re just a number. We’ve developed a relationship with someone who’s in the ag industry,” she adds.

“From an underwriting perspective, it’s not just solely looking at numbers,” agrees Geoff Delamater, Farm Credit loan officer. “We weigh local factors in our decisions and understand the cyclical nature of commodity prices. There’s more to it than strictly looking at dollars for us.”

“I like that there are the farmers on the Farm Credit Board who I know,” says Amanda. “They’re responsible people; they’re weighing in with their opinions and really understand our needs. It’s nice feeling like they get me.”

The step toward their dairy’s value-added products was both calculated and sudden. Wes’ parents, Bob and Diane Miller, had wanted to do on-farm processing. “We had been talking with cheesemakers and doing research, compiling information, and educating ourselves for years,” says Wes. In 2018, they got a call “from a cheesemaker we had really wanted to work with, so it was a ‘hurry up and get permits and labels’ situation,” adds Wes.

Forty locations in the area now carry Chesapeake Gold products. Local retailers such as farmers markets, delis, family-run grocery stores, plus wineries and breweries now carry the farm’s 20 flavors of two styles of cheese — Colby and Cheddar, besides the more recent additions of butter, yogurt, and beef. They also started doing two flavors of artisan salami so they can offer a full charcuterie board.

They send their milk to three different processors to have it returned as their cheese, butter, and yogurt, “It’s a lot of coordinating,” shares Amanda.

Although she worked in agronomy for eight years, Amanda also has a background in cheesemaking on her resume, as she set up and started the cheesemaking operation at the University of Delaware, including everything from creating procedures to writing the recipes.

Value-added dairy products are an exciting prospective market, believes Amanda. “I think the demand is there. COVID really made the consumer come out and look for us. We’re meeting more people in our community — it’s giving me the reassurance that people do want more unique products from the farm,” she adds. “They like to know who’s making it and they really like supporting their neighbors.”

While support for their products has been heartening, Chesapeake Gold’s popularity did not come without effort. Amanda continues, “It’s a good product, but it’s a product that we’ve worked really hard at getting in front of people. Sampling sells.”

Festivals and events give the Millers a chance to give out cups of yogurt or cheese samples to passersby. This past summer Amanda spent every weekend on the road, sometimes at several events in a single weekend, to meet the local community, since “that’s our target customer.”

With support from a loyal customer base, looking ahead the Millers are excited about the possibility of adding robotic milkers to the farm, along with other goals such as the on-farm creamery and store.

Why are Amanda and Wes farmers on the rise?

“While being grounded in history and heritage, Wes and Amanda are willing to branch out and try new ways of reaching the community, growing a customer base, and make their generational farm profitable. They have always exhibited an excitement for the future of their farm and I can see that carrying over as they work on several great ideas for expanding their business.”

—Geoff Delamater, Farm Credit loan officer

Follow Chesapeake Gold Farms online to order at chesapeakegoldfarms.com, on Facebook: @chesapeakegoldfarms and on Instagram: @chesapeake_gold_farms