We'd been noticing lately that there is a wide range in the quality of milk. Steve has a very sensitive nose and swears that the average gallon of milk in a plastic jug tastes just like the bottle. I don't notice the flavor, but I do know that milk from the co-op in Ypsilanti was different. It became thick when it soured rather than separating, and it tasted more like milk used to taste. The cheaper the milk is, the worse the quality seems to be.
According to the Weston A. Price Foundation, commercial milk production methods produce poor quality milk. Commercial milk has to be fortified with vitamins because the cows are fed all sorts of strange things rather than being allowed to graze freely on grass. Homogenization breaks down butterfat globules so that they no longer rise. Pasteurization destroys other vitamins, enzymes and beneficial bacteria, and much commercial milk is now ultra-pasteurized to give it the longest possible shelf-life. It is illegal to sell unpasteurized milk, a dietary staple of humans until the 1920's.
I had lunch with Holly recently, and she raved about the quality of milk products she is making at home with unpasteurized, unhomogenized milk, including yogurt, cheese, and butter. She also pointed me in the direction of Hampshire Farm at Eastern Market.
The Hampshires converted their family farm in Kinston, Michigan, to organic products after some hard times in the 1980s. They're primary operation is growing beans and grains, stone-ground grains, and traditional breads. They are new to the market and just started their herd shares program. Instead of selling milk, Mr. Hampshire sells shares in his livestock, and milk from the herd is delivered to shareholders at Eastern Market in Detroit. The current share price is $150 per share, which entitles the shareholder to weekly delivery of 2 gallons per share, or one gallon per halfshare. The cost of having Mr. Hampshire care for the cows is $60 per month, per share, or $30 per half share.
Last weekend, we got our first gallon of milk, and it is every bit as luxurious as I had imagined. The herd is comprised of Jersey cows, traditional milking cows that give high-fat content milk, so about one quarter of the gallon was cream. Just as well because Steve brought home a flat of Michigan strawberries at the same time. There is nothing quite like strawberries with cream from your own cow for breakfast.
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seems expensive but when you figure in the costs of organic milks and creams at a store and the fact that the raw milk is reportedly healthier for you, then it works out. optionally a half share would cost the same but only be $7 a week for a gallon.
$7 per gallon sounds about right, and we were paying $4-5 per gallon for the completely gross stuff. My latest adventure is culturing buttermilk. I had no idea that it was as easy as leaving raw milk on the counter for 3 days.
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