It’s a bitter-sweet end for a family-run farm that’s fought hard to stay afloat through the pandemic.
“With COVID that really kind of was the last straw,” said Janna Feldman, who owns Doe’s & Diva’s Dairy along with her husband, in Honey Creek, Iowa.
The Paycheck Protection Program helped the couple out a bit, but it wasn’t enough to keep the business going.
“We didn’t even have enough money to purchase all the permits and have the inspections we needed for commercial dairy so we’re no longer do that,” said Feldman, noting they really have no other choice now than to let their beloved goats and sheep go.
“That’s the hard part. Me trying to come to terms with giving up what I love so much, not only the passion of taking care of my sheep and lambs,” said Feldman, adding it’s also tough letting go of a process she’s worked to perfect; producing some award winning goat cheese along the way.
“And doing everything as naturally as we can and then producing everything we can from the bounty they provide us, yarn, soaps from the milk, cheese,” said Feldman, who want to the animals to keep producing. She’s determined not to let them go to slaughter.
“I just don’t want to take them to auction,” said Feldman. “I have a real hard time with that. I do.”
So, they’re looking for the right buyers. “If I can find people like us who want just a couple for the milk, for the yarn, whatever they want to do with it,” said Feldman. “They don’t need to have a commercial dairy.”
And she’s willing to help out new owners by sharing her knowledge and know-how, while also preserving some of her passion. “That will be something that helps fill my heart, said an emotional Feldman.
Feldman also noted they have a freezer full of Doe’s & Diva’s cheese from their commercial business that they’re hoping to sell off.
Source: wowt.com
