The owners
The first owner of the farm was François-Nil Bouchard. His sons Gérard and Rodrigue then became owners of the farm in the 1970s, followed by Pierre Bouchard (their brother), Lyse Rosa (Rodrigue’s wife) and Suzie Brassard (Gérard’s wife), who obtained shares in 1986. From the beginning, they were reluctant to use chemical fertilizers and pesticides, and they were already interested in organic farming in the 1970s. Carl Bouchard, Gérard’s son, became the owner of the farm in 2008, joined by his sister Annie Bouchard in 2016 and her partner Valérie Lefebvre. The current owners are Carl, Annie and Valerie.
Methods
As well as supplying milk to the cooperative, the farm has been producing processed dairy products, such as cheese and yogurt, since 1993. A new barn was built in 2003 to improve the cows’ comfort. The farm has loose housing and a milking parlour for the 105 milking cows. An extension was made in 2012 to accommodate heifers (young cows) in loose housing. The farm has 350 cultivated hectares (fodder and grain) and it became organic in the 1980s (fields and milk). As well as being kept in loose housing, the cows have access to pasture in the summer.
