New generation hopes to continue dairy farm’s success

Jake Palladino’s day starts with a piercing alarm that goes off at 4:30 a.m., long before the sun has come up. It’s early to some, but for the son of a dairy farmer, it just makes sense.

His breakfast consists of cereal with, of course, milk and a large cup of coffee — but only one cup, as he’s trying to cut down on his caffeine intake.

The day starts early because it has to. Palladino, who is 26 years old, has gone from the son of a dairy farmer to a dairy farmer himself.

Earlier this year, Palladino took over as the herd manager for the Walnut Ridge Dairy Farm in Lansing. His father, Stephen Palladino, is a partner in owning the farm.

Jake works 12 days on and gets two days off each cycle. The work is hard, and the days are long, but there’s no other place Jake would rather be in the early morning than driving to the barn.

“I love it. It’s not work when you love what you’re doing, and it’s really fun to be doing this with family,” he said. “The cows and the people are my thing. I really enjoy the animals, I really connect with the animals, and I just love taking care of them. We also have a lot of great people here on the farm. I love trying to make a positive team that wants to work hard, has a good attitude and comes together to try to be successful.”

The farm was recently featured in the American Dairy Association North East’s YouTube series “This American Dairy Farmer.” It was founded in 1951 by Dave and Joan Harde and has had partners buy ownership shares of the farm over the years. Now, Jake hopes to become a partner in the farm one day.

The farm sits on top of Brown Hill Road, sprawled over 2,400 acres of Lansing countryside. It has nearly 1,700 milking cows, with an additional 2,000 cows that are too young to milk.

Although it seems picturesque, the life of a farmer wasn’t always appealing to Jake. He remembers a time when he was a kid when he didn’t think he would continue in the family business.

“I went through periods of time where I was looking at my dad and how stressed out he was, how early in the morning he had to get up, [and] I had it in my head that no, I wasn’t going to be a farmer,” he said. “When I started to figure out where I wanted to go to college, I kept coming back to the thought that I would have never not wanted to be raised as a kid in any other situation. I felt strongly that being raised on a farm is why I am the person I am today, and I want to eventually be able to do that with my family.”

Jake graduated from Cornell University in 2018, where he was part of the dairy farming program and earned a degree in animal science. Later, he did leave the family farm, working for a different farm in western New York.

There was something missing during his time away, which was family. The Palladino family has had farming in its bloodlines dating back to Italy more than three generations ago, before the family came to the United States.

With the education he received at Cornell, Jake knew he was ready to help make the farm that he grew up on even better.

“Growing up on the farm, I worked all the time, but a lot of times, I was doing the odd jobs and things like that,” he said. “College is where all the pieces came together and I started to understand all the little things, why we do certain things on the farm and that it’s not just milking cows or doing crops. There’s so much science, so much business, so much employee management; there’s so much in farming that people don’t realize.”

Walnut Ridge is part of the Cayuga Milk Ingredients co-op in Auburn. The farm sends its milk to Auburn, where the co-op distributes it.

Jake said that between the pandemic and rising inflation, navigating the market has been a challenge for dairy farmers everywhere.

“Each year is different — there’s different challenges and things that you didn’t think would be a challenge become a challenge,” he said. “It’s always entertaining.”

Jake said he wants to help people learn the things they don’t realize about dairy farming, from how small the margins are on the business to the science of making milk sustainably.

He hopes the video on YouTube serves as a way to educate people about not only the farm’s story but also the story of dairy farming in general.

“As dairy farmers, we really want to open up to the public,” he said. “We’re willing to answer any questions people have about where milk comes from, what we do on the farm and reassure everyone that dairy is a very safe and healthy option.”

There are some core tenets that Jake wants people to think of when they think of Walnut Ridge, two being sustainability and the safety of the product.

“We really want to take care of our land and our crops,” he said. “I want people to think that we’re safe because a lot of people are worried about where their food comes from. I’ll tell you that milk is very safe.”

As could be expected, Jake is a big fan of milk, and not just for its nutritional value or providing his livelihood; it happens to be a key ingredient in a summer staple that he loves.

“Milk is the most complete nutritional package that you can get in a food item,” he said. “It has so much protein, vitamins and minerals. It has good fat, and it makes really good stuff [like] ice cream. There’s nothing better than ice cream on these hot summer days.”

Partnership may be years away for Jake, but it doesn’t stop him from dreaming while working on hot summer days on Brown Hill Road. He thinks the property could serve as a dairy farm and homemade ice cream stand one day.

It’s a dream, one he hopes to fulfill. For now, there is work on the farm, and it’s work that Jake is happy and ready to do.

“That is way far down the line and definitely a dream right now,” he said of the ice cream stand. “We’re busy enough as it is.”

Planning Board meets to discuss Dandy Mini-Mart

The most-discussed intersection in town was once again on the minds of residents as the Lansing Planning Board met for an update on the proposed Dandy Mini-Mart at the corner of Route 34 and Route 34B.

The meeting took place July 25 and featured an update on Dandy completing part one of the environmental review needed to proceed.

Cayuga Scenic Byway Executive Director Sue A. Poelvoorde also sent a letter to Lansing Town Planner John Zepko expressing comments and concerns regarding the proposed Dandy, which was made public during the meeting.

In the letter, Poelvoorde said the board is sympathetic to the concerns of the Rogues Harbor Inn regarding increased traffic to an already busy corner but thinks that improvements to the site plan have been made by Dandy.

“We note improvements to the building footprint, appearance including brick and stone exterior materials and mullioned windows with awnings,” she said in the letter. “In addition, with respect to the site plan, the larger landscaped buffer zone along the highway frontage at the intersection is an improvement. We feel that all of these additions may help mitigate some of the impacts of the development at the intersection.”

The letter also noted concerns about noise and light pollution. She requested clarification on how Dandy plans to alleviate those concerns, noting that other mini-marts are lit and have music playing from gas station pumps 24 hours a day.

At the conclusion of the letter, Poelvoorde said the board of directors is excited about the possibility of a fueling station on the byway and will have more comments as the process continues.

“With respect to the impact on the Cayuga Lake Scenic Byway, we do feel that the addition of this type of facility along the route will benefit travelers coming to visit the byway and experience the scenic and cultural resources along the route,” she said. “We are encouraged to see provisions for bicycles and electric vehicles. Both of the modes are increasing in use and should be encouraged by providing adequate facilities throughout the Cayuga Lake area.”

The store being proposed is on a 4.7-acre plot of land and would be 6,100 square feet. It would feature a drive-thru window, 36 parking spaces with four tractor-trailer spaces and four for electric vehicles. Read more at tinyurl.com/29cm2kq3.

Lansing at Large appears every Wednesday in Tompkins Weekly. Send story ideas to editorial@VizellaMedia.com.