William Nunes and Lianne Nunes-Taverna, the brother and sister team, operate Drakes View Dairy on 866-acres at the Historic A Ranch in the Point Reyes National Seashore. They joined Straus Family Creamery as a certified organic milk supplier in July 2019 with an organic herd of 85 Jersey and Jersey-Holstein cross breed cows. Drakes View Dairy is a new farming business, situated on land that has been farmed in their family for 100 years. Three sides of Drakes View Dairy are surrounded by the Pacific Ocean, and on fog-free days, the location offers stunning views of the water and distant coastal towns.
William and Lianne are thrilled to continue the family legacy in the same location that their great-great-grandfather first started a century ago. They believe that organic dairy farming practices help them create a healthy environment for future generations.
Their great-great-grandfather JV Mendoza immigrated from the Azores, Portugal, in the late 1890s, purchasing both the Historic A and Historic B Ranches on December 17, 1919. (The Mendoza Dairy is located on the Historic B Ranch and is the first dairy farm in the Point to produce milk for Straus Family Creamery.)
It has been a dream of the Nunes siblings to have their own dairy farm since they were young children. They were born and raised on their family dairy farm, and continuing their family’s legacy has been a big motivator for them.
William grew up working on various farms from a young age to develop his dairy farming skills. He graduated from California State University, Chico with an Ag Business degree in 2019. Lianne has an established career in the organic certification industry and provides organic consulting services for other farms and operations. She graduated from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo with a degree in Dairy Science and minor in Ag Business in 2013.
“Our passion for this industry is very deeply rooted in being fifth-generation farmers on both our mother’s and father’s side,” says William and Lianne. “We’re excited about delivering a premium quality organic milk to consumers with Straus Family Creamery.”
Their goal is to farm sustainably and look forward to a long-term lease with the National Park Service. They also look forward to the opportunity of possibly installing a methane digester and implementing carbon farming practices with the hope of eventually becoming a carbon-neutral dairy farm.
The Drakes View Dairy is collaborating with the Park in creating a sustainable organic farming model within the Seashore that results in climate-positive farms that support our local organic farming and food system and benefit the surrounding rural community and the greater Bay Area. This collaboration is a critical step in our ongoing quest to create an organic farming model that is good for the planet and our communities.
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