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“I got told ‘no’ a lot,” Amy shares as she reflects on the years she spent getting her value-added dairy business off the ground. In this episode of Cow-Side Conversations, Amy Brickner of Stover Farms and Destiny Dairy Bar in Cumberland County, Pennsylvania opens up about her journey to bottling her own milk and how the times she heard ‘no’ only fueled her to fulfill her destiny: create a space for her community to see where their food comes from. With a herd of 80 milking cows, a Wagyu dairy cross beef herd, and an on-farm store where she sells her milk, ice cream, beef and more, Amy shares how she goes the extra mile to connect with her customers. She also talks about how she balances herd work with the value-added business, the vulnerability that comes with opening her farm to the public, and how she continues to dream big to move her business forward.

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For Mental Health Awareness Month, this episode of Cow-Side Conversations showcases how a unique friendship started years ago helps a small group of farm women located across the state balance the highs and lows of farming and family life. Katie Sattazahn and her family farm in Womelsdorf, Berks County, while Jessica Slaymaker and her husband farm in Columbia Crossroads, Tioga County. They share their perspective on why making space and grace for your mental wellness matters on the farm.

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Duane Stoltzfus of Pennwood Farms LLC in Somerset County, PA shares a glimpse inside their nutrition program, the feeding decisions they make for their 600-cow herd as they crop 2,000 acres, and the return on investment they’ve seen after implementing a feed watch technology system. He also describes the ups and downs of having a digester on their farm and explains the lengthy, but fulfilling, journey their family took to develop a transition plan that provides opportunities for the next generation.