Farnham Maple Sugaring

Kevin and Tammy Farnham boil sap into maple syrup at Farnham Farm Maple Sugaring, in Plainfield.

They have beautiful animals outside, the kind of cows that dance up to people with excitement.  Inside, the syrup production is a super well-oiled machine.  The timed and precise efforts of Kevin and several workers boil sap for us to see.  

It was incredible, and the only live sap boil we got to see on the tour.  It’s not easy to predict exactly when a boil will occur for an economic development director  and her team to get to see it live, but the Farnhams have the science down so well that they get it right to the minute, and we get to see the magic.

Tammy tells us incredible stories of the many generations of Farnham families that have been on the hill, all caring for the land.  Three generations mingle with us at the sugar house.

Ryan Joseph joined us from the office of Senator Bernie Sanders, and we talked about the economic role of maple in Vermont.

Tammy also shared the story of starting off maple production on the farm.  When her daughters were young, she told me that another farmer had permission to tap the trees.

The girls noticed the sap buckets were overflowing and hadn’t been collected when they got off the school bus, and they took charge and collected the sap themselves.

Now the farm produces syrup from its own sap and for other farmers, a common way different maple makers consolidate their work for efficiency and cost.