Congresswoman Becca Balint (D-Vt.) visited Riverview Farm in East Franklin on Friday as part of a three-stop tour of Vermont farms.

Slipping plastic booties over her shoes, Balint walked the dairy farm with owner Denna Benjamin, learning about the business’s many successes and challenges.

Benjamin touted the innovative solutions she and other Vermont dairy farmers are utilizing to stay viable. Riverview Farm, for example, grows almost all of its own feed corn — 1,000 acres of it — and stores it in enormous “bunks” to avoid spoilage.

Tom Gates, a representative from Ben & Jerry’s “Caring Dairy”program, said doing so not only saves the farm money, but helps it control what’s in the feed and where it comes from. But with 500 cows to feed, margins are tight.

“We’re one weather issue away from not having enough,” Benjamin said. “We haven’t had that issue yet, but I lose sleep thinking about it.”

Ben & Jerry’s  “Caring Dairy” program supports partnering farmers in improving their practices and provides a set of environmental standards to adhere to.

Another challenge is familiar across industries in Vermont: workforce. The state’s shrinking working-age-group has made it difficult to fill on-farm jobs. Benjamin said she’s grateful for the four migrant farm workers who’ve been with her for years and would like to see the federal government make it easier for folks who want to work here to do so.

“We need a better pathway for people to get work visas,” she told Balint. “Why is there such a hurdle?”

“It’s maddening,” Balint said. “We’re not looking at the reality of the situation.”

The group also took a tour of the net-zero house Riverview Farm built on-site for its farmworkers. Using solar panels, the house generates more energy than it uses, leading to an electricity bill that’s just $29 a month.

Benjamin said constructing the house took four years and was only possible because of grants and community partnerships. For dairy farmers, every dollar counts, so construction would have been too expensive otherwise — though the solar panels, heat pump and energy-smart appliances now make costs manageable going forward.

Benjamin wants to see action taken to make building like this easier, so more farms can do it. Not only is the project good for the environment, but it boosts the quality of life and dignity of its four residents.

“It pulls typically disadvantaged people into the spotlight,” Benjamin said.

“This is exciting to me,” Balint said, “and gets me thinking about how we at the federal level can help replicate this.”

“We also need you to wave the flag for Vermont, and say, ‘Look at what our dairy farmers are doing,’” Benjamin said.

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