New beginnings
I am a first-generation farmer but am, however, engaged to an Xth-generation farmer: he represents the 5th generation of his family on our farm, but his forebears had been farmers before that (which is in itself fascinating to think that all his ancestors did the same work, but that this particular job has evolved so much over the years).
While I don’t have a farming background, I studied agronomy (we have a specific degree in France, called « ingénieur agronome » which roughly translates to « agricultural engineer »). I was attracted to it because the field of « agronomy » is just so broad and offers so many different paths: you can choose focus on environment engineering, which is what I was originally interested in and eventually chose to specialize in, on livestock production, crop production, but also on economics, marketing or even statistics. I met my fiancé after the first year of my degree, and he was really the one who introduced me to farming and showed me what it can mean to be a farmer and entrepreneur. He was working on the construction of a biogas plant on the farm, and I found it fascinating. Biogas plant, or anaerobic digestion plant, treat organic waste to produce biogas, a renewable gas, and digestate, an organic fertilizer. Biogas can then be used to produce heat and electricity, or be upgraded to biomethane, which has the same properties as natural gas.
I had already been interested in sustainable development and renewable energies, and having just discovered the potential of farming, it seemed like a perfect mix for me. I became really interested in the project, and followed it while finishes my studies on the other side of the country, going back and forth between my school in Rennes and the farm, near Strasbourg. After graduating in 2017, I worked for an energy provider for 1.5 years and was in charge of the biomethane portfolio, establishing contracts with biomethane producers. But I quickly realized that the farm was bound to evolve, with exiting new projects ahead, and wanted to be part of that journey. So in early 2019 I started worked on the farm, while being a consultant as a side job.
Two years later, 2021 promises to be an intense year, with several projects coming to life on the farm. I want to remember this time and be able to look back upon it in a few years and take stock of what we’ll have (hopefully) accomplished.
People imagine that farmers are outside all the time, working with animals or in the fields. And that is true for a lot of farmers, but while I do help with the chores (feeding the calves!) when needed, especially on the weekends, my truth is actually a bit different. I handle most of the admin for the farm and the biogas plant, and work on developing new projects for the farm, meaning that I spend most of my time in the office.
The main project is a dairy, to produce our own cheese on the farm from the milk of our Jersey cows. Construction started a month ago, and we hope to be ready to make our first cheeses this summer. We have also been selling grass-fed beef directly to consumers since early 2019 and still have a few other projects up our sleeves!
As someone who doesn’t have any famers in my family and who had never worked on a farm, farming can be pretty intimating, just because it’s so broad and sometimes feels like you have a thousands jobs all squeezed into one. Looking back at my first couple of years on the farm, I realize that while I’ve been settling on the farm and finding my place in it, I’ve also been trying to find my way into farming by learning about its history (and farming being one of the oldest jobs there is, that is a tall order, but absolutely fascinating) and the science behind it, which is very much linked to my original training. That search for information has led me to deeply interesting books and research, that I’ll share here. It’s a resource I wish I had in school, and hope it will be useful and a source of inspiration for some.
I am hoping to publish regularly but it might very well become an irregular thing. Whatever happens, I hope you'll come along.