Help the Goats of PumpkinVine Farm with a new Milking Parlor

The hard-working dairy goats (and farmers!) of Pumpkin Vine Family Farm are looking for help to finish their new milking parlor! In 2022, we were proud to be awarded a grant to build a new milking parlor, in recognition of our contribution to the Maine agricultural economy. However, it has taken us two years to find a contractor willing to work on a farm-based project, and building costs in midcoast Maine have gone up, as land around us is in high demand for new homes. Two years later, construction on our milking parlor is FINALLY ready to begin, and we need about $45,000 more than originally estimated to complete the project.

Pumpkin Vine Family Farm is a beloved part of the midcoast Maine community, as we have opened our farm to visitors almost every Sunday since we first opened our doors, with a wide range of activities, from goat hikes to live music to conservation education. Our ability to offer free events to the public is funded in large part by the milk produced by our amazing goats. We are very proud of our beautiful Alpine and Nubian goats and the high quality of milk they produce on our lush hillside pastures. We have built our farm slowly, from very humble beginnings, with patched-together infrastructure. As our herd has grown, we have had to work incredibly hard to increase production with inefficient equipment. The new milking parlor will be a life-changer: with a milk pipeline and an automated cleaning system, it will significantly decrease our milking time and allow us to milk more goats in comfortable facilities – both better for the goats and the humans milking them! We are excited by the thought of taking care of our goats AND actually having some family time to relax and share meals together.