It’s been months! We’ve been {not-so} patiently waiting. You see, the farmer we get our milk from, their cow was pregnant, and we’ve been waiting for the new calf to be born so that we can once again have milk!
We’re very excited about this.
In our house, we drink raw {aka unpasteurized} milk. Wait, waaa?! That’s right our milk is straight from the cow…no pasteurization (heating the milk to 161*F) or homogenization here.
I’m not going to tell you all the reasons why raw milk is better over grocery store {aka conventional} milk, or why grocery store milk is better than raw milk. Because it’s a ridiculous debate and is pretty much a matter of opinion and preference, although somewhat based on fact.
What I will tell you is why we drink raw milk, but first a little background.
Before Ave, I worked for 5 years in the conventional milk industry. The company I worked for is one of the LARGEST in the US and operates under several different names and with several hundred different products.
Working in the Biz gave me a lot of insight into milk. When I started, there was this whole craze about rBST FREE milk. We had to do a lot of paperwork showing where the rBST and NON-rBST milk was going. The entire facility was designed to ensure that there was no way that either of these products could be cross-contaminated or mistaken for each other. There were very few farms that were rBST FREE and most of them were organic.
Fast forward a few years, chances are the milk in your fridge is rBST and antibiotic FREE, whether you intentionally bought it that way or not. Most of the major milk companies realized that rBST milk was not a great thing, that they needed to move away from it. And they have.
Since that change, there is not really much difference between organic {still bought at your grocery store and pasteurized} and conventional milk. Yea, so that 1/2 gallon of organic milk that costs between $4 and $8 is probably the same thing as the stuff that’s $3.50 a gallon.
The cows are treated the same at both places…they’re still, most likely, sitting in a barn being fed grain {all though the grain may be organic}, neither of them is receiving antibiotics or rBST. Being “organic” is mostly a matter of licensing by the government; it’s expensive to bare that moniker. Yes, there are things that they have to do and commit to, but a vast majority of non-organic producers also adhere to those standard operation procedures (SOPs)…of course there are some who don’t and still give their cows antibiotics and rBST, but the majority don’t.
Why we drink raw milk.
We drink raw milk because it does have some things that conventional milk does not:
*It has bacteria, because it’s not pasteurized, but it’s good bacteria, bacteria that aids in digestion (if your milk is coming from a CLEAN, reputable farm, there is little-to-no-worry about listeria).
*It has a lot more nutrients and vitamins in it. Our milk is from a grass fed {pastured} cow. What does that mean? It means that all of the vitamins etc that is in the grass is in our milk, making it a much more nutritious milk.
*Higher fat content. The fat is in the milk (as opposed to drinking skim). Our society has been brain-washed to deem ALL fat as a bad thing. There are good kinds and there are bad kinds, but our bodies and brains NEED {the good} fat. Of course we need to limit just how much milk we drink because it does have a higher caloric value.
*The taste…oh my goodness. I’ve always been a devout skim milk drinker. I can polish off two full glasses of milk at dinner, without any problems (remember I don’t like beer, wine, soda, juices…I drink milk and water). It took me a bit to get used to the taste, but there is nothing quite as delicious as a creamy, ice-cold cup of milk.
*Matt’s lactose intolerant and for some reason raw milk doesn’t bother him.
*We’re supporting a local farmer, rather than giving our money to the big corporations (since even conventional/organic farmers don’t make much money on their milk).
Now, I don’t suggest you go to just any farm and get raw milk. Most farmers are not going to give it to you, because of the recent illegalization in many states to sell raw milk, they don’t want to risk you turning them in to the USDA or FDA or any other alphabet soup agency for selling you milk, particularly if you do get sick.
The milk we get is from a friend, we know their animals, we know how their animals are kept and treated, we know what they are fed {grass}, we know that they’re not forcing production with different drugs or giving antibiotics etc, we know that that calf is not starving because of the milk being given to us (the same supply/demand that happens with human breastfeeding works in cows too).
What I do suggest, if you’re willing and able, try some raw milk. Not sure how to find a place to get some…read this. Try some raw milk cheeses. It’s different, it’s an acquired taste, but it is so much better for you (in my opinion). And, where else can you get milk that was “milked” today?
*Disclaimer: I am in no way a scientist or dietician or any number of other things. I’m only a person with a tiny-bit of first hand experience who knows what they like and prefer (it is just my opinion and our preference) to drink.
We do have major plans for the back of our house (which consists of the kitchen/breakfast nook, laundry/mud room, and office/pantry), but they are huge and not happening this year. Those plans involve reconstructing the poorly built foundation then gutting the entire back end and making it one room, with a full bedroom (rather than gabled-attic) above.
