Cricket Creek Farm is a small grass-based dairy in Western Massachusetts. We make several award-winning cheeses from the milk of our registered herd of Brown Swiss and Jersey cows (currently milking about 25 cows). In addition to the cheese, we sell raw milk from our farm store. We also raise pigs and beef, as well as layer hens. We make all our own hay for our cows (3 cuts on 150 acres).
We have a bakery located on the farm that supplies the store with fresh bread, cookies, granola, and other baked goods. We are a member of Berkshire Grown and sell cheese to many shops & restaurants in the Berkshires. We attend several local farmers markets and have a full-farm CSA offering milk, cheese, eggs, beef, pork & bread. We also have a cheese CSA in Brooklyn, NY.
We are looking for 2-5 interns to join us for 2012. 1-2 interns will be solely dedicated to cheese making and marketing. 1-2 will be dedicated completely to the farm – milking, moving animals, chores, hay making. Finally, 1-2 will be split between cheese and farm work. We are looking for enthusiastic interns who are passionate about food and agriculture, specifically small-scale dairying.
Dates of internship: Ideal candidates would be interested/able to stay for 1 full year, we request an absolute minimum of 7 month-stay. Start date between April 1 and May 15, 2012, leave no earlier than Dec 15, 2012.
We are located in Williamstown, MA – a small college town in the northern Berkshires. Williamstown has a great independent movie theater, the Clark Art museum, a wonderful theater festival in the summertime and several great restaurants. We are surrounded by preserved land with many hiking trails. Nearby is Mass MOCA, Tanglewood, and many lovely small towns. Williamstown is 3 hours from Boston and 3 1/2 hours from NYC.
Cheese Internship
Those interested in the cheese internship must be comfortable learning the technical aspects of cheese making, including some chemistry. Must be very meticulous, detail oriented, and experienced in sanitary food preparation/handling. Cleanliness is key. Work in the cheese room is fun and rewarding and also requires long hours on your feet washing dishes and caring for the aging cheese.
Farm Internship
You must have some farm experience. Interns must be proficient at driving a tractor and comfortable around cows and other farm animals. Experience with basic tractor maintenance and repair is highly desirable. Experience milking is a plus. An ideal candidate would be able to identify basic bovine illnesses and problems, identify cows in heat, feel comfortable safely restraining an animal to examine/treat her, separate out a single cow from the herd of 25. Morning milking is at 6m and evening milking is at 5PM – the same person doesn’t milk in the morning and that same evening but interns should expect to milk some mornings and some evenings every week.
All interns must have good people skills and enjoy interacting with the public. We’re looking for interns who are excited about taking on significant responsibility. All interns will be attending weekly farmers markets and occasionally making deliveries. All interns work 6 full days per week with 1 full day off. Everyone will have a different day off – it may not be a weekend day. We all work as a team here and we’d like to find interns who want to take on an independent project/aspect of the business and build it. We’re always looking to adjust and improve and want to work with interns who can bring new energy/ideas/improvements to the farm.
Educational Opportunities include – Cheese making, rotational grazing, farm marketing, cow health, milking, hay production, community interaction. Access to our small library of farm/cheese related books.
Compensation We provide housing, a stipend, and some food. Interns will share the farm house with the other inters, located on the farm. The house has wireless internet, heat, two bathrooms, and a fully-equipped kitchen. We also provide a stipend starting at $500/month. Amount of stipend depends on experience and length of commitment. Raw milk is free and available to all Cricket Creek staff and interns. All staff and interns have access to pulled baked goods, freezer burned meat, and receive a 20% discount on all items in our farm store.
If you are interested please send us an email (info@cricketcreekfarm.com) with a resume, 3 references, and answers to the list of questions below. Please clearly state the best way to get in touch with you. You can send an email to info@cricketcreekfarm.com or call (413) 458-5888 if you have questions. We are happy to provide contact info for previous interns. Any applicant who seems to be a good fit will be expected to come for a two day visit in February or March. We will fill positions on a rolling basis.
A preliminary list of interview questions is below.
The more information you provide, the better. This will help us determine if you would be a good fit.
1. Are you interested in working solely in the cheese room, solely on the farm, or both? (We have 1-2 spots open for each of the three areas).
2. How did you hear about working at Cricket Creek?
3. What interests you most about working here?
4. What is your availability? Are you able to commit to a 7 month minimum? When can you start?
5. What is your experience working/living in an intimate setting like a small farm?
6. Is a starting stipend of $500/month financially feasible for you?
7. How to you feel about our work schedule – 6 long days per week with 1 day off?
8. How would you describe your communication skills? Are you open, honest, and communicative?
9. How would you describe your interest/ability to be a public face of the farm (attending farmers markets, assisting customers in our farm store)?
10. Have you ever lived in this area? Do you think Northern Berkshire County would be a good fit for you?
12. Please list anything else you think might be helpful in describing yourself such as personal interests, etc.
If you have cheese room interest…
A. Please describe in detail any cheese making experience.
B. What specifically interests you in cheese making – details are helpful.
C. Please describe any commercial food preparation/handling experience.
D. Would you describe yourself as meticulous, detail oriented, clean, and through?
If you have farm work interest…
A. Please describe in detail any farm experience you have, specifically work with animals.
B. Do you have experience milking? Please describe the set-up in detail.
C. Please describe any experience you have with tractor maintenance and repair.
D. Please describe any general building/maintenance/construction experience you have.
E. Would you feel comfortable separating out a single cow from the herd of 25?
F. Please describe any experience you have making hay.