La Petite Vacherie

Do you enjoy tasting good mountain cheeses produced with respect for the environment and the welfare of animals? Then take part in the revival of a traditional mountain farm on the Belledonne massif in French Alps, committed to an agro-ecological approach to produce and transform organic milk. I am Aurélien Gillier, 39 years old. After a career in the field of architecture, I embarked on a new path in mountain agriculture and fromages de terroir 8 years ago. This project is a childhood dream that emerged on a mountain pasture in Savoie where we spent our family vacations every summer. With an agricultural diploma and a professional license in cheesemaking, I have gained knowledge and experience from the high alpine valleys of Beaufort AOP to the urban workshops of La Laiterie de Paris, as well as in social and therapeutic farming with autistic adults at La Ferme de Belle Chambre. Today, I would like to revive a mountain dairy farm in the valley of Haut-Bréda in Isère; a sincere and committed endeavor. This farm project is part of an approach to traditional mountain agriculture conducted in organic farming, with the ambition of practicing agriculture based on careful observation of the environment, animals, and their capabilities. While the ancient glacial valley of Haut-Bréda has always hosted herds of sheep from the South of France during the grazing season, it also consists of numerous small subsistence farms – crops and livestock serving only farmers and their families - with dairy cows and a cheese-making tradition. La Petite Vacherie will be the only active dairy farm in Haut-Bréda. https://www.allevard-les-bains.com/decouvrir/aux-alentours/vallee-du-gresivaudan/la-vallee-du-haut-breda/ It will meet the demands of the local market in Pays d'Allevard, the tourist market of the 7 Laux ski resort, as well as the urban markets of Grenoble, Chambéry, and others. Let’s work together towards restoring the lost Alpine cheese heritage in the valley. This project is driven by the desire to demonstrate that an efficient small-scale agricultural system can be profitable by generating high added value, all while being environmentally friendly and respectful to animals. The challenges of La Petite Vacherie are: ● Renovating natural meadows through the practice of dynamic rotational grazing, improving their productivity by promoting botanical diversity to ensure the health of the animals, resilience of the forage agroecosystem, and soil biodiversity. ● Aiming for self-sufficiency in feed for livestock. ● Securing agricultural land in a highly precarious and declining tourist area. ● Building a herd of approximately 12 dairy cows of the Tarine and Abondance breeds, which are mountain-adapted cows suitable for steep terrain. ● Achieving a milk production of approximately 46,000 liters per year ● Feeding the herd exclusively with hay from mountain meadows in the alpine valley and pastures ● Establishing a dairy processing facility with the creation of a self-built mobile processing laboratory based on a Tiny-House model, allowing for on-site production in the mountain pasture The production of milk will make it possible to make yogurts (steamed or stirred, infused or with homemade jams of fresh and local fruits) As well as raw milk cheeses: a tomme de Belledonne with diversified flora, and of course an exceptional cooked pressed cheese Le Haut-Bréda, inspired by the traditional know-how of the Alpine arc and the culture of levains sauvages acquired in the Beaufortain mountain pastures. • Creating a fully controlled short food supply chain by marketing the finished products at a fair and remunerative price. • Achieving a high value per liter of milk (€2.50/L) • Distribution to public/collective establishments, restaurants, specialty grocery stores and dairy-cheese shops, organic grocers and AMAP) among others... • Obtaining quality labels (Slow Food, organic certification, etc.) “We only achieve the universal from the ultra-local.” Salvador Dali quoting Montaigne