McMahon’s EZ Acres

McMahon’s EZ Acres

E-Z Acres is an appropriate name for the McMahon farm sitting just south of Skaneateles Lake. The farm in existence today started from the same eight heifers his father bought in 1957. The herd has since grown to 950 cows.

Brothers Peter and Mike McMahon and Mike’s son, Neil, who now own the farm, wanted to be good neighbors. People in the town were asking questions about farming and agriculture and the impact on the surrounding land. It was important that someone from the farm be involved at the community level. Mike McMahon offered, and 40 years later he still sits on the town planning board.

“I wanted to be a person people are familiar with and are comfortable approaching,” Mike says. His mission has turned into a labor of love for his own farm, his community, and the voice of agriculture issues regarding environmental sustainability.

He sits on 11 boards, chairing five of them. Mike is often traveling, speaking, and presenting at hearings and meetings throughout NY State. He makes frequent visits to Albany and even Washington, DC. He knows what he is talking about! E-Z Acres has won many awards for environmental sustainability, the most recent being top place for the U.S. Dairy Sustainability Award for Outstanding Dairy Farm Sustainability. That’s the best farm in the US!

For 20 years Mike and his brother have been drawing samples and testing the waters. The farm has taken measures to plant thousands of trees to assure the streams remain clean. Mike teaches these other farmers how to test their wells and monitor water supply on their own properties.

Through his research and experiences on the family farm at E-Z Acres, Mike McMahon makes a real effort to make farming a sustainable and environmentally friendly industry. If he could pass on a message, it would be for each of us to put effort into our own properties. “We’re blessed with pristine water… let’s keep it that way!”