Von Trapp Farmstead Centers on Regenerative Farming

Sebastian von Trapp and wife, Molly Semler, morph the family dairy farm into a successful creamery business.

Photos Courtesy Ali Kaukas

Cheese was not a part of the von Trapp Farmstead until the most recent generation took over the business.

“Our creamery didn’t exist when I was growing up; we just shipped our fluid milk to a processor,” says Sebastian von Trapp, who took over running the Waitsfield, VT, farm operations from his parents, Martin and Kelly, after his father suddenly passed away from cancer three years ago. “The milk industry is challenging in terms of economics, so that’s why I wanted to do something different on the farm. Cheesemaking was a way to change the economics.”

The farm offers Vermont cheeses, yogurt, and pastured meats. Its regenerative farming practices meet all the standards required to be certified organic, while increasing its soil ecological diversity. This means the cows graze on the pasture, with their manure fertilizing the land.

The Farm Store, built into the northwest corner of the barn in 2020, includes the creamery’s certified organic farmstead cheeses and yogurts, along with pastured meats. The store also sells more than 40 different local items, such as board fixings, beer and wine, organic produce, and both ready-to-eat and pantry staples.

A STORIED HISTORY

“I’m the third generation to farm here; my grandparents bought this 200-acre farm in 1959, and my parents took it over in 1978,” says von Trapp. “Although I grew up on this farm, I didn’t think I’d have anything to do with it.”

Instead, he went to college and landed a job in software. After traveling a lot in his 20s and experiencing other parts of the country, von Trapp came back to appreciate his family farm.

However, cheesemaking didn’t exist until he became more involved.

Adding a creamery created more work, which he describes as both fulfilling and maddening. However, it was cheese that brought von Trapp’s wife, Molly Semler, into his life.

“Molly and I came together through the love of cheese and what we do working together,” he says.
However, before starting his cheesemaking journey, von Trapp had to convince his parents it was a good idea to start a creamery.

“We had to invest quite a bit in the infrastructure, and we didn’t have any background in cheesemaking, so it was pretty hodgepodge,” says von Trapp. “But I became obsessed with cheesemaking.”

He recalls his first cheesemaking experience using the book, Home Cheese Making by Ricki Carroll.
“I made mozzarella in my Burlington condo while still working at my software job,” he says. “I always loved cheese but didn’t understand the different cheese styles and never mongered.”

Instead, he grew up eating Cabot Creamery’s block cheddar from the truck that picked up the farm’s milk.

“The world opened up when I began cheesemaking at home,” says von Trapp. “I had studied business at the University of Vermont and wanted to do something on my own. The family farm was a way to execute a business.”

After quitting his software job in 2005, von Trapp contacted Jasper Hill Creamery’s owners, brothers Andy and Mateo Kehler.

“They didn’t have their cellars yet, and it was a smaller operation than it is today,” he says. “They invited me for a long visit on July 4, so I told them my story and how I wanted to start a creamery on my family farm.”

Interested in mentoring farmers, the Kehlers created an internship arrangement for von Trapp, who then worked at Jasper Hill for about a year.

“They were in the middle of expanding their aging cellars, so I realized there was more to it than I thought,” von Trapp says. “It was a natural fit to work with Jasper Hill, as they were very inspiring to me, and we were aligned on what was going on in the industry.”

While getting a hands-on education in cheesemaking, von Trapp took several trips to check out other creameries.

“I connected with Randolph Hodgson at Neal’s Yard Dairy,” he says. “I went to England for a month, and Randolph connected me with 10 different cheesemakers there.”

In addition to taking cheesemaking courses, von Trapp worked with different consultants throughout the years who have been influential, including Ivan Larcher and Marc Druart.

When von Trapp’s creamery was first established, the business partnered with Jasper Hill Farm for its Oma washed rind cheese, but von Trapp made, aged, and distributed his other three cheeses independently. This included bloomy rind Mt Alice, cave-aged blue Mad River Blue and Alpine Savage.

“In 2024, we brought Oma home and began aging and distributing all of our farmstead cheeses from the farm,” says von Trapp.

The farm now produces approximately 65,000 pounds of cheese annually, which von Trapp says is a small amount compared to other producers.

A CHEESEMAKER’S EVOLUTION

“Four years after getting the cheesemaking side up and running, Molly came to work in the business,” he says. “We were only turning a portion of our milk into cheese and shipping the rest to Organic Valley. We formed a strong bond as partners in life and cheese, and when my father passed away, it was apparent and logical that I take over managing the farm with my mother, and Molly continue managing the creamery.”

His role slowly transitioned to helping manage the cow herd, land and cropping, while Semler oversees the creamery business.

“I’m the guy who fixes everything, and I don’t run cheesemakes anymore,” he says. “But I’m quite proud of how our products have evolved and the quality. Especially due to the challenges of COVID and having twins.”

The farm has between 45 and 48 milking cows that produce all its cheese and two yogurt flavors.

“Although cheese lends a level of complexity to the business model, it is more sustainable compared to the uncertain global milk market,” says Semler.

Like her husband, she came to cheesemaking in a roundabout way. After studying psychology in college, Semler worked in wilderness therapy. This is when she realized how much she enjoyed working with her hands.

It also helped that she grew up in Vermont surrounded by the state’s strong farming community and passionate food culture.

“My mom spent every dime buying high-quality food and did lots of cooking,” says Semler. “I became very interested in cheese, and I started talking to friends about being a cheesemaker; they didn’t understand it.”

Looking for a career change, Semler ended up coming back to Vermont from Utah, thinking she would only stay one month. “My mom asked me to housesit for a month, and I still had my dream to make cheese,” she says.

Fortunately, she was able to make that dream a reality after meeting Sage Farm’s owner Molly Pindell at a local farmers market.

“I said I’d do whatever they needed, so I was their first apprentice,” Semler recalls. “I milked goats and observed in the cheese room. As I dove further into it, I couldn’t get enough.”

She eventually transitioned into only working in cheese, putting her fears and wilderness therapy career aside.

Von Trapp and Semler initially worked together when she joined his creamery, while his parents, Martin and Kelly, handled the farm side. Then Martin passed away, and everything changed.

“We always knew we’d take over the farm, but it happened faster and in different circumstances than expected,” says Semler.

There are currently four people working the farm and another four working on the creamery side. Kelly remains the herd manager. Cheese is produced four days a week.

“Cheese is a beautiful product made up of just four ingredients, but it has thousands of iterations,” says Semler. “It’s a simple and practical food that is nutritious, dense and diverse.”

Now, 13 years after joining the farm, Semler says she has never been close to being bored. “Cheese never stops fascinating me,” she says. “I equate it to playing music or sports, where you’re always practicing and honing your skills; cheesemaking is very much the same.”

A REGENERATIVE FARMING MODEL

At the very base of von Trapp’s operations is the soil, and then it’s the herd, both critical to cheesemaking.

“At our foundation, we are caring for the soil through proper manure management and rotational grazing,” says Semler. “As a farmstead producer, we then focus heavily on cow health and milk quality, then cheese quality and finally all the aspects of a small cheese-making business, including food safety, branding, marketing, packaging, sales and all of our relationships.”

She says the regenerative market is not perfectly defined due to lack of certification, however von Trapp’s system is clear.

“It not only deals with soil health, but also how we treat employees,” she says. “Our philosophy is that, while we’re farming, we improve soil health. Many farms deplete the land or soil, and we try to improve it.”

The farm’s cows rotationally graze so as not to damage the root systems or cause erosion. The animals eat grass during the summer, then hay in the winter. The barnyard has layers of hay, manure and urine that are compacted by the cows, which ages the manure and creates continuous fermentation.

“Manure is taken out at the end of the season and aged more before being spread on our pasture,” Semler explains. “We think of the regenerative aspect being right-sized for our land. We won’t milk more cows because our pasture only supports the animals we currently have.”

The byproducts are also used. For example, the farm’s 30 to 50 pigs drink the whey created from the cheesemaking and eat organic bread from the bakery. Their meat is sold in the farm store.

AN EVOLVING INDUSTRY

The creamery made its first batch of cheese in 2009, and a lot has changed since then.

“When I was working with Jasper Hill, the industry was in its infancy as far as the excitement around specialty cheese,” says von Trapp. “There was space for new producers with high quality product.”

Now he says the industry has steadily moved in a direction where it’s more difficult to be a small producer. With today’s economic obstacles, it can be harder to make a living.

“You have to find some balance either doing everything on a smaller scale or capturing retail markets like farmers markets, while also working with wholesalers, and that is incredibly competitive,” says von Trapp. “We’re also up against all the imports and good domestic producers, so we need to keep prices in check, and it’s tough; our cheese is expensive at $25 to $40 a pound retail.”

He is sad to think that von Trapp’s cheese is a luxury item not available to everyone. That’s why the couple opened the Farm Store during the pandemic.

“I thought that was the time to engage with the local community and sell our cheese at a price that’s attainable,” he explained.

The farm’s cheeses are sold in the Northeast, but also as far west as California.

“I wrestle with the concept that we have to sell our cheese all over the country to make our business model work,” says von Trapp. “We work with six notable distributors, but the cheese industry is being taken over by conglomerates, and we feel the squeeze.”

Being in a market selling against much larger companies and European cheesemakers that have their lines subsidized has been a challenge.

“We’re selling at a margin that barely works for us, but we’re lucky to be in a community that supports our business,” he says.

With Vermont being a big cheesemaking state, it has provided Semler with many opportunities to develop relationships and become involved in the industry as a whole. She is currently on the Vermont Cheese Council’s Education Committee and also tries to attend as many American Cheese Society events as possible.

“We enter our cheese in four competitions throughout the year,” she says. “We recently won two Super Golds at the World Cheese Competition for Mad River Blue and Mt Alice, and were the only U.S. farmstead producer that received this honor.” Opa won third place in 2025 at ACS in the beer-washed category.

The von Trapp Farmstead continues to evolve. The couple recently installed a barnyard for its heifers and completed a big fencing project to better its pasture system.

“These tweaks are improving our farm,” Semler says. “We also have made more cheese after focusing on cow nutrition over the last several years. Now, each cow makes a bit more milk.”

Its four cheese styles utilize different technology, aging and environments, so the couple is not interested in a big expansion of its offerings.

“We don’t want to make 10 styles of cheese or respond to market trends,” she says. “We want to make four cheese styles to the best of our ability.”