CHITTENDEN, Vt. (WCAX) – While many Vermonters take over family farms or leave them altogether, a young Chittenden native is forging his own path to farming.
From a young age, Jamie Hamilton knew farming was his future.
“I’ve always been an animal lover and I’ve always been a tractor lover,” said Hamilton.
But he didn’t inherit a family farm. The 26-year-old Vermont native is a first-generation farmer.
“My parents supported me in any way they can, but you know, they don’t own 1,000 acres of land. So I’ve been really lucky to just work with landowners that want me to be successful,” said Hamilton.
One of those mentors is a retired farmer who agreed to lease his land to Hamilton. It’s now home to Hamilton Cattle Company, a small-scale grass-fed beef operation in Florence and Chittenden.
Hamilton defied the odds to get there. He stuck around when many young Vermonters left the state, a new face entering Vermont’s ancient agricultural industry that many farmers are exiting.
“It’s a shame. You know, the harsh reality is there are less and less people that are getting into agriculture,” he said.
That reality steered Hamilton away from dairy and the market issues plaguing the industry in recent years.
Friend and long-time beef farmer Brian Kemp with Mountain Meadows Farm encouraged him to try locally raised beef instead, a product he’s noticed more Vermonters are seeking out.
“I think more and more, the millennial generation is really… that’s becoming more evident, they want to know where the food’s coming from,” said Kemp.
Hamilton’s still up against big players. He just hired his first employee while industrial beef farms have entire teams. But he’s built up a solid group of local customers and says he’s determined to do things on his own terms.
“I kind of have always had the mentality that I’m young enough if I can always be above water and come out further ahead than when I started, and at a scale that makes sense to do it, then it’s worth doing,” said Hamilton.
Hamilton says he hopes more people his age consider carrying on the legacy of previous generations of farmers.
