Vermont Dairy Plant Closures Hit Farmers

Dairy Farmers of America is shutting down its St. Albans, Vermont plant this August, forcing local farmers to truck milk farther to processing hubs in Maine, Massachusetts, and New York — adding costly transport fees directly to their paychecks. This follows the closure of other Vermont plants, including Hood in Barre and Franklin Foods in Enosburg, raising alarms about rising expenses and shrinking local infrastructure. Farmers like John Jenkins say processors control pricing, leaving farmers vulnerable to cost hikes. While Dairy Farmers claims the closures stem from market pressures and high operating costs — despite recent upgrades — farmers fear the loss of local processing could destabilize Vermont’s dairy economy. They’re calling for stronger industry support to prevent further disruption. Support the show:Get a discount at https://solipillow.com/discount/dnn. Advertise on DNN:[email protected] This is an automated, high-level news summary based on public reporting.Report issues to [email protected]. View sources & latest updates:https://sources.thednn.ai/154967430eda0eee