AMENIA — Amid unanimous favorable reports from the herd, Coon Brothers dairy farm in Amenia held an open barn on Sunday, Dec. 1, inviting contractors and friends to visit the cows and see their new automatic milking system that has brought robotics to the modern dairy industry.
Coon Brothers has used GEA equipment for milking over the years, so co-owners Peter and Amos Coon indicated that GEA Dairy Robot equipment was chosen to automate their operation, requiring a long period of construction.
The preceding year had been given to renovating the barns in preparation for installation of the robotic equipment that began in the spring and continued into July. Six robotic milking stations have been installed and all are now kept busy throughout the day.
Fully automated milking systems have been installed at Coon Brothers Farm in Amenia. Computers at each milking station monitor quantity and quality. Visitors were invited to an open barn tour on Sunday, Dec. 1, to see the new systems at work.Photo by Leila Hawken
Each cow decides for herself when to go in for milking, the decision prompted by discomfort. Observation showed that the cows placidly await their turns without disagreements or jostling for position.
“The difference is the cow’s comfort,” Amos explained. “Now they are getting milked when they want to,” he added.
The farm has a population of 600 animals with 350 milk cows, including Guernseys and Holsteins, divided between two barns, Peter Coon said.
“The system is better for the cows and it will save labor,” said Coon. “and the cows seem to like it.”
The computerized system monitors each cow, recognizing individuals by a computer chip attached to the cow’s collar. During each milking session, the cow’s milk production and quality of the milk are instantly measured and tested, with any problems detected and dealt with.
The system isolates and collects data from each quarter of the cow’s udder.
Cows residing in the milking barn are there all the time, Amos Coon said. “The new system has changed how we do everything.”
In the barn the cows munch on molasses flavored silage but get a treat in the milking stall in the form of custom grain.
Milk output is measured in pounds, not gallons. One cow can produce 20 pounds of milk in a single milking session, Amos explained. They go for milking more than once a day; some cows may give as much as 140 pounds of milk in a single day. Genetics contribute to a top-producing cow, Amos said.
A cow that has recently calved gives more milk, with increased production lasting 50-200 days. A newborn calf will only suckle for 12 hours before being shifted to manual feeding of bovine colostrum which is separated from the cow’s milk production by the robotic system.
In the event of a power outage, a generator keeps the systems going.
A large 6,000 gallon milk collection tank holds the milk until a tanker truck takes it away.
Robotic milking is not new to the area. Freund’s Farm in East Canaan has also installed automated milking with good results.
Eric Alexander
The 25th district represents and serves the communities of Amenia, Millbrook, Pleasant Valley, Washington and Wassaic. Whoever is elected on Nov. 3 will represent these towns from January 2027 until the end of 2028.
Alexander currently holds the position after being elected in 2025. Due to the mandate made by New York State in 2023 changing all local elections outside of New York City from odd to even years, Alexander now must run again after entering office in January.
“Unfortunately I’ve been in this role for 7 months now and I’ve got to start campaigning again, but my campaign will always be based on the effectiveness of my work,” Alexander said. “It’s been a motivation to get going and get things done.”
Alexander’s election last year marked an end to the decade-long Republican majority in the Dutchess County Legislature. He attributed the Democratic majority as being key in making progress.
Since being in office, Alexander has focused on using tax dollars more effectively, affordability and bringing awareness to resources available to county residents. With a background in finance having worked on Wall Street in trading and asset management, he applied that experience to the legislature. Alexander is also the Chair of the Board of Trustees at Emerson College in Boston, his alma mater.
“There’s a lot of work to be done and there is a lot of room for improvement in county government,” Alexander said. “In terms of transparency, in terms of working in a bipartisan way, in terms of just being more effective in not wasting tax dollars.”
The Republican candidate challenging the incumbent is Hubert, a local business owner.
Stefanie HubertPhoto provided
“I think it’s part of our civic responsibility to participate in local elections and also to build a community,” Hubert said. “As a Republican, seeing that the tides have changed that it was intrinsically my responsibility to step up and see if we could win back at least the seat in District 25.”
Hubert and her husband own a trucking and heavy equipment company. Hubert is currently the Executive Director at Cornell Cooperative Extension of Putnam County. Considering her background, Hubert’s campaign focuses on ensuring that Dutchess County is a place where small businesses can thrive while making things easier on business owners.
“It is difficult to keep up with all of the mandates and taxes and everything else that is thrust upon us,” Hubert said. “So trying to make sense of some kind of compromise that allows certain taxes to be paid out but also to not eat away at the bottom line of a small business owner.”
In addition to small businesses, if elected Hubert hopes to focus on the agriculture industry, less high density housing and youth development. Seeking more traditional values in the area, she envisions a return to more small community ideals, bringing the county back to how it was about 5 to 10 years ago.
“People live here because it’s a nice, rural community that has a lot of opportunities,” she said. “We live here because we don’t want it to become a city or urban area for which it’s not.”
One issue that transcends party lines for these candidates is Emergency Medical Services in the county. Services have become privately owned in the area causing costs to skyrocket with some towns having to pay nearly a million dollars a year. The system is also volunteer based, not paid. Both Alexander and Hubert have noted the gravity of this issue and seek bipartisan collaboration to fix it.
“I think all of us are entitled to emergency medical services should we need it. I don’t think the amount of time that it takes to get to your house should be determined by whether or not it’s a paid ambulance corps,” Hubert said. “I think that’s a large decision that’s being discussed in Dutchess County and I definitely think that’s a bipartisan issue.”
Elections will be held on Nov. 3. Go to the Dutchess County Board of Elections website to register and find your polling center.
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