click to enlarge - Melissa Pasanen ©️ Seven Days
- Butterworks Farm maple yogurt
Butterworks Farm, the pioneering Westfield farm with a line of regionally distributed organic dairy products, is for sale, according to co-owner Christine Lazor. Her parents, Jack and Anne Lazor, cofounded the farm and business in 1976. Christine, 44, and her husband, Collin Mahoney, 50, began running Butterworks Farm with a small team as Jack became increasingly incapacitated by prostate cancer, with which he was diagnosed in 2010.
He died at age 69 in late November of 2020.
The farmland with the buildings is a separate legal entity from the dairy business. "It'll be two separate sales, but ideally, someone will buy both," Christine said. "We want the farm to continue being farmed and make the amazing products."
The farm real estate includes the 167-acre conserved home farm, a post-and-beam granary crowned with a distinctive tower, and two homes where the elder Lazors and Christine's family have lived, plus two parcels of about 170 acres in Westfield and North Troy. The family is waiting for a final appraisal to set a price on this package.
click to enlarge - File: Jame Buck
- Butterworks Farm in 2017
The dairy business includes the grass-fed Jersey herd of about 70; the farming and dairy processing equipment; and the Butterworks Farm product line of yogurt, kefir, heavy cream and buttermilk.
Butterworks products are distributed throughout the Northeast, including to regional locations of Whole Foods Market. Christine said gross sales have fluctuated between $1 and $1.3 million in recent years. The family has valued that part of the operation at about $830,000.
As detailed in a 2017
Seven Days cover story, Jack and Anne were working on gradually shifting ownership of the farm and business to their only child and her husband.
After Jack's cancer diagnosis, he spent seven years on home dialysis for cancer-related kidney failure. Anne, now 71, suffered a stroke about a year ago. Christine said the toll of caring for Jack was heavy, and "farming really takes it out of you," she added.
Jack and Anne were honored in 2019 with a
Vermont Agricultural Hall of Fame lifetime achievement award. Jack was especially active as a mentor to other farmers. He had very high standards and specific ideas about how Butterworks should be run, Christine recalled.
"The emotional journey we went through with my dad ... He was always looking for someone from outside to be a
real farmer," Christine said.
"We've been kind of burnt out for a really long time," she acknowledged. "Until recently, we had some attachment — like, determination — that we were gonna make it work."
click to enlarge - File: James Buck
- Christine Lazor and Collin Mahoney in 2017
Regarding the decision to sell the only home she's ever known, as well as her family legacy, Christine said it has been hard but also a relief. "I've been there my whole life, with really focused involvement for more than 20 years. It's been a privilege, and we've learned a lot," she said. "It's scary to let go."
Christine said she can't imagine a life without cows. The family will probably keep one cow to milk for themselves.
"We're definitely sad but also hopeful," Christine continued. "We've been working really hard at it, and now it's somebody else's turn to try."
A sale listing for both the real estate and the dairy business is in process on
Vermont Land Link.