SHEFFIELD -- Last summer, Holly Aragi was facing the loss of hundreds of acres of land her family farms.
A cash buyer appeared to scoop up the farmland, which her family has rented and cropped for more than 28 years from an owner who put the land up for sale last year.
But with the help of a large group of local land trusts, donors and state and federal money, Aragi was able to save her family's Pine Island Farm and ensure that it will forever be used only for farming.
With the assurance of the land being acquired by the state's Agricultural Preservation Program, the bank helped her buy the farmland, knowing the state would turn around and cut her a check.
"It took a lot of stress off of us when we got that check," Aragi said. "We wouldn't have been able to do something like that."
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That $4,075,000 check just came in, along with more for another Sheffield dairy farm -- Balsam Hill Farm -- as well as one in Rowley.
The state Department of Agricultural Resources announced in a statement on Thursday more than $7 million in these agricultural acquisitions.
The amount of the acquisition of these three farms is the most ever spent on farms since the inception of the APR program, according to MDAR Commissioner Ashley Randle.
The purchases ensure that the properties remain farmland in perpetuity. It also will "help farmers compete" as land prices rise, said the state's Energy and Environmental Affairs Secretary Rebecca Tepper.
The Aragis' Pine Island Farm, the largest dairy in Massachusetts with 1,500 cattle, received the money to keep its 443 acres in the APR program.
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And Balsam Hill Farm -- with its more than 500 cows -- received $58,500 for its 14 acres. The Herrick Farm Trust in Rowley, received $3,350,000.
The land will now have permanent deed restrictions and limit resale prices to the farmland's agricultural value in order to make it affordable.
The Healey administration has been working since 2023 to expand the protection of farmland.
Through the APR program, the state buys these agricultural restrictions on farmland to "improve farmland access, strengthen food security, and protect environmental resources," according to MDAR.
These latest purchases were paid for with a combination of state, private and federal dollars. The state pays farmers the difference between fair market value and agricultural value.
State Rep. Leigh Davis, D-Great Barrington, said in a statement that these "multigenerational farms are essential to Berkshire County's agricultural identity, economy and workforce." And state Sen. Paul Mark, D-Becket, praised the acquisition, saying that it will help "preserve the natural resources and natural beauty of our district," as well as "stabilize food security."
"The APR program has allowed me to live my dream of farming land that I own," said Balsam Hill owner Morven Allen.
The Pine Island purchase was made possible in part by help from the Cooper Hill Conservation alliance and its eight member organizations in the South County and Northwest Connecticut area. These include the Sheffield Land Trust, The Trustees and Reservations and the Housatonic Valley Association.
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Others who donated for the Pine Island purchase include Elyse Harney Real Estate and NBT Bank.
Pine Island is also known for ingenuity. The farm installed a methane digester that converts manure into electricity that is pushed onto the grid. It powers the farm, and the extra power is sold in the form of credits.
Aragi said that the support they received for the land purchase was "very humbling."
"We were just so honored that they worked with us," she said. Aragi also said it is a gift "To be able to see open land forever, and still be able to crop these without seeing subdivisions and mansions and golf courses."