Company description

Big Picture Farm is a goat dairy, creamery and farmstead confectionary located on a beautiful hillside in Townshend, Vermont.  Our approximately 40 saanens, alpines and nubian goats live happy and healthy lives rotating through the rich pastures and leafy woodlands that characterize our hillside Vermont farm. We are animal welfare approved and the happiness of our goats and the land they graze is of the highest priority. Most of our milk is transformed into our award winning goat milk caramels and chocolates which are sold to over 1000 stores around the country. The rest of our milk goes into very small batches of raw milk cheese and other chocolates and confections. In addition to our goats we keep 24 laying hens, 6 hogs and tend an active flower & vegetable garden, and have a fledgling fruit orchard. We use our own eggs, honey, flowers and fruit in our confections as well. We also run a 9 bedroom farmhouse which we rent our for retreats, reunions, weddings and host on farm agritourismo style programming.

Job description

Big Picture Farm is looking to add a full time member to our team. An entry-level position, this character will fill a vital role on of our farm in the roll of Renaissance farm-hand/caretaker. You will live in our well-appointed colt barn (full bathroom, heat, wifi, dishwasher etc) and will be tasked with almost all of the varieties of jobs that exist on the farm. You will milk goats, make caramel, tend the gardens, greet the airbnb guests, help wash sheets and clean, help host farm events, milk goats some more, muck stalls, take out the garbage, wack weeds and mow grass, make cheese, make caramel some more, help pack caramel, feed and fence in the pigs, flip compost piles, weed the garden again, and then head to the farmer's market to sell our goodies. You will breathe beautiful mountain air, drink the tastiest water from our deep well, live a Vermont hillside life. You will fall in love with a herd of goats, a piece of land, a couple of dogs, a handful of cats, and the tastiest eggs you’ve ever had from our flock of hens. Hopefully you will like us, too. 

 

Who are we? We are in our ninth year as a farm and as a business. We already have a dedicated and incredible staff that have been with us for years. Laura manages our shop, and Jessie and Grace manage the herd and the creamery. Katelyn manages the homestead and our Farmhouse airbnb. What do Lucas and Louisa do then, you ask? A little of everything. We try to keep the money coming in. We keep one eye on the future and one eye on making sure everything isn't always breaking. We have our hands everywhere, but have gotten good at delegating. You will be working with all of us in all the various spheres. 
 

Is this an office job? No, this is not. Is it 9-5? Not necessarily. The hours vary as the nature of the job flows in and out of seasons. In late April and early May you will be a goat doula, midwife, and goat mama to orphaned babies. You will get up in the middle of the night to check in with the pregnant ladies, and rise at dawn to see if any new kiddos have arrived. While we wait for summer to come into full swing, you will be helping prep the grounds for another season. Once kidding season is over, more of a schedule starts to take hold and the rhythm of milking, pasture rotation, caramel production and agritourism takes over. This is a real farm job. You will learn a ton, and we will be patient with you as you learn, but you will also work hard, and the tasks are not always glamorous. You will mow the lawn, take out the garbage, milk goats and make caramel on repeat. As agritourism becomes a larger piece of our puzzle, we spend a lot of time making the farm look nice. Really nice. We are always adding new garden beds, which means moving rocks, moving compost, more weeding and weed wacking. Guests come and go and that means exciting things like cocktails with goats, and farm dinners, but it also means changing sheets, greeting guests, tending to their needs, and maintaining a smile and positive attitude even when you are tired or the weather is glum. It's a perfect job for someone who craves farm-life not just for its romance but also for its grit and monotony. Added bonus if you have strong a strong culinary background. 

 

Start Date: April 15th. Minimum commitment through Dec 20th with potential for longer-term employment. Probably this job is better suited for individuals, but could also work for some couples. No pets. Must have a reliable car since we live rurally. 40-45 hours per week in exchange for housing (including all utilities, heat, wifi) and veggies out of the garden, eggs from the hens, and a meat and cheese allowance. 2 days off in a row each week, not weekends. 

Compensation

this position is: stipend / non-monetary compensation

Application instructions

Deadline

no deadline