RUTLAND — Generations of loyal customers are lamenting the demise of Thomas Dairy — a victim of the changing dairy industry in Vermont, compounded by the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Since the family business announced it will close Oct. 1, “The public outcry has been overwhelming,” said Abbey Thomas, co-owner of Thomas Dairy and director of marketing. “Basically, all I’ve done for the past five days is talk to people and try to reassure them that there are other milk options for them.”
Many customers have been placing orders for memorabilia from the iconic dairy, which has been in business for 99 years. When Thomas delivered a T-shirt to a local woman, “she was in tears” about the impending closure.
Thomas said the emotional response has been even stronger than she expected. But, she said, the challenges resulting from the Covid pandemic became financially insurmountable.
“The decrease in business from colleges, restaurants, and tourism during the Covid shutdown has hit us hard,” the family explained in the shutdown announcement: “The future remains uncertain.”
“We changed and pivoted with the industry for as long as we could,” said Thomas.
Dairy farms have been struggling in Vermont; a 2018 report from the Vermont Milk Commission reported that, for four straight years, milk prices didn’t even cover the cost of production, let alone allow farmers to turn a profit. Even before Covid, keeping up with competitors like nut milks and organics was challenging.
The dairy had established a relationship with Chef Collective, a New York City-based food delivery service. “It was a good deal for both of us,” said Thomas. But when the city began to lock down, restaurants closed, and that relationship fell apart.
“Unfortunately, Covid stepped in and ended things rather abruptly,” said Thomas.
The business struggled to survive, in spite of landing federal money through the Payroll Protection Program and some revenue from the USDA Farmers to Families Food Box program. “Those ended for us this summer,” Thomas said.
Thomas Dairy had always had the advantage of its “premium product” coupled with a strong local following, Thomas said.
“We had so many loyal consumers buying our milk at stores, but that’s only half of our business,” she said. The other half came from restaurants and universities. “I don’t know how any dairy could survive losing a third of their business overnight,” Thomas said.
A place in history
Thomas Dairy is a significant loss for the Rutland area, and the state.
“Thomas Dairy was one of the last Vermont-owned dairy processors,” said Bob Baird, a Rutland County farmer who kept a milking herd for 25 years. Baird has also worked for the Vermont Land Trust. He is on the board of Shelburne Farms and chairs the agriculture advisory committee for the Vermont Housing and Conservation Board.
Given his own background as a dairy farmer, Baird said he was sad to hear about the closure. “I still have that emotional connection to dairy,” he said, though the Bairds sold their milking herd in 1996. Now, they produce maple syrup.
Like the Thomases, the Bairds’ farm has a long family history; Baird’s grandparents farmed the same land.
The Thomases celebrate their long history on the company website: “When Orin Thomas purchased our farm in 1854, it’s unlikely that he knew he was beginning a family business that would continue to grow and prosper over the next four generations. Orin Thomas bought his first purebred Holstein in 1901. Upon his death in 1909, his son Orin took over management of the farm, which then had 40 Holsteins. In 1921, Orin started delivering milk in Rutland City and Thomas Dairy was born.”
Farming sets Vermont apart, said Baird. “I think it gives the state its character, and I’d really like that to stay.”
But for dairy, the future may not be very bright, Baird said.
Changes in the industry
“This announcement marks the end of an era,” said Anson Tebbetts, Vermont’s agriculture secretary.
“From dinner tables to cafeterias and everywhere in between, Thomas Dairy milk provided comfort, fuel and nutrition to countless Vermonters over a period of generations,” Tebbetts said in a statement. “They were committed to agriculture, community, their employees and their neighbors.”
Thomas Dairy sold its milking herd in 2005, when it transitioned to processing milk. Now it collects its milk from three other area farms, processes it and sells it. Those three farms now have to find a new market for their milk.
“We’re doing our best to assist them with new markets,” Thomas said.
As small dairy operations continue to close, the dairy industry is becoming increasingly consolidated, said Lindsey Berk, director of marketing and development at Addison County Relocalization Network.
“It’s leaving massive dairies or super-micro dairies that produce artisanal milk and dairy products,” Berk said in a statement. “With the closure of institutions and restaurants, Covid disrupted the whole market, causing many of these small dairies to go under.”
According to reports from the Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets, 20 dairy farms have closed since March. While dairy represented 90% of Vermont agriculture as recently as the 1960s, that number is now down to 70%. Over 20,000 farms were milking cows in the 1920s; now, there are only around 700 left, according to the Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets.
For its part, Thomas Dairy is working to connect its 30 employees with other local businesses. Thomas said dozens of area businesses have been in touch since the closure was announced last week, including Casella Waste Systems, Foley Distribution, and Hood.
“I think there will be some opportunities there,” said Lyle Jepson, executive director of the Chamber and Economic Development of the Rutland Region.
Jepson applauded the Thomas family for striving for a smooth transition for employees and for the community. “It sounds like they have done this in a planful way and in a way that is supportive,” he said. “They’re alerting suppliers in advance. They’re working to support employees.”
In addition to Abbey Thomas, Thomas Dairy is owned by Dick Thomas, Christa Thomas, Perry Thomas and John Thomas.
And, despite the shutdown announcement, Abbey Thomas said, “I’m still hoping and praying for a miracle.”
