A Complicated Path to Find a Simple Way of Life

Dairy cows may be the center of attention at Katie Webb Clark and Nate Clark’s family farm in Maine, but 7-year-old Edith is eager to greet visitors with marker-drawn details about her cat business.

Mom, Katie, grins and says, “No, she doesn’t milk cats to make cheese,” but the young entrepreneur maintains the farm should equally be a dairy farm and a cat farm. The farm is an idyllic place for the joint effort: It’s small, a warmhearted family calls it home, the landscape is lovely and all animals — big and small — receive their caretakers’ personal touch.

We are not going to focus on Edith’s business endeavor (affectionately named Smoothie Cat Farm) in this article. That’s a story for another day. Today we focus on the family, the cows, the land and the farm — the last remaining farm in their town.

Defining the Meaning of ‘Rich’

On a mild September day, Katie walks the field with toddler Nathaniel on her back. Edith runs ahead, pointing out plants, trees, cows and you name it. A cat is at her heels. Her dad, Nate, walks tranquilly down the lane from the barn to a field where Jersey cows munch away on fresh greens.

This is a rich lifestyle — being together, working together, facing tough times together and appreciating all they have … together.

The family is not interested in getting wealthy from farming; they know the sweet spot — milking about 45 healthy cows and spending their days together.

“We don’t want to be obsessed with money. We want enough money, not more money,” Katie said.

Producing food without harmful chemicals is also important to them. Katie is insistent on knowing what goes into her family’s food and, in turn, providing quality organic products to consumers and their families. All Organic Valley products are sustainably made without toxic pesticides, synthetic hormones, antibiotics or GMOs.

Katie is also passionate about protecting the food system in general and the planet.

The family works with what is natural and doesn't ravage the land to maximize profit. Likewise, the cows produce quality milk without being pushed to produce more milk. Like all Organic Valley cows, the family’s cows live a pasture-based lifestyle.

“They have the sun, wind and air. They are not stressed out,” Katie said.

Nate adds, “We are quiet, calm, consistent and don’t ask too much of our cows.”

Cow comfort is essential to cow health. Having fewer than 50 cows on their farm benefits the land and family — keeping the time it takes to milk the cows and the everyday chores in check. In farming, every cow counts. Too many could take away from the lifestyle the family strives for.

“We wanted a simple way of life, and the farm is the simple way,” Nate said. “The cows are on grass. We wake up and feed the cows, milk the cows and watch the cows graze. That’s what we do. It’s nice to have a life that’s extremely simple.”

A Farm That Almost Wasn’t

Of course, everything can’t be simple. Maine winters can be difficult with blizzards and high winds. And it certainly wasn’t simple for the young couple to find a farm even though Katie and Nate have farming backgrounds.

Before they wed in 2013, the couple searched for a farm in central Maine to be close to their family that lived in the region. At the time, Katie worked as an organic certifier, and Nate owned a carpentry business. They deeply wanted to farm but were held up by obstacles that other young farmers face. Costs of operating a dairy farm are up, property values have increased and (in their region of Maine) there isn’t much farmland available.

After three years of searching, they learned an ideally located, nearly 200-year-old farm was for sale. Patience paid off. They had their organic family farm.

Maine Farmland Trust purchased a conservation easement on the property, making the farm more affordable and ensuring it will forever be a farm.

An amazing mental freedom emerged when they left their off-farm jobs to focus on their new farm. They homeschool Edith and have time for thoughtful family conversations in the barn.

A Farm Fit for a King

The story goes, back in the day the king of England deeded the farm to its earliest owners, the Reed family. The Reeds later sold the farm, and that farmer eventually started selling his organic milk to Organic Valley. A Reed descendant still lives nearby and is eager to stop by and tell the Clarks stories and historical details of the farm.

The farm was certified organic by the Department of Agriculture when Katie and Nate purchased it in 2017. Because of its proximity to their hometowns, family members also help with farm work.

“It’s important to be tied to a place, and this allows us to work with our family,” said Nate, who, along with Nathaniel and Edith, has two children from a previous marriage. “We like being involved in a multi-generational way. Being tied to a place and land is an admirable thing to do, and it is a difficult thing to do.”

Organic Valley provides a predictable, stable pay price to farmers, and Nate and Katie agree that they may have a hard time feeding the family if they farmed conventionally. Other Organic Valley farmers also live in the area, providing a useful support system when farm questions arise.

It’s been at least 10 years since another farm operated in their town. In fact, in the past 10 years, Maine lost nearly half of its dairy farms. There are now only 141 dairy farms in Maine, according to the Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry.

Eco-friendly Land Stewards

It’s important to keep small family farms operating while also ensuring the earth stays green, Katie said.

Organic Valley farmers are stewards of approximately 14,000 acres of organic land in Maine, and the Clark family takes environmental stewardship seriously. They compost waste and shavings from the animal beds and practice no-till farming (in which farmers do not till their fields before planting crops to minimize soil disturbance).

They also rely on rotational grazing. This method of frequently moving cows to different pastures reduces overgrazing by giving plants a break to regrow. The cows and pollinators appreciate the fresh forages, too. Another benefit of rotational grazing is that the cows’ manure is more evenly distributed around the fields and acts as a nutrient for soil.

Organic Valley farmers are passionate about soil health. Without healthy soil, there is no healthy ecosystem.

And the handful of friendly farm cats appreciate the pastures, too. They follow the family as they tend to cows. The curious felines also spend time snooping around the pastures — likely searching for random mice.

This organic dairy cow farm and future cat farm is a special place.

“It is great to have family around and to see how involved everyone is and everybody works together,” Nate said. “It’s tough on the body, but it has benefits — you are close to your cows and your family.”