Raw Milk
|
|
|
We are licensed by New York State to sell raw milk from the farm. It can be purchased any time at our farm store. Here are all the details you need to know to purchase milk:
Price:
Milk is sold by the half gallon in glass jars.
1 half gallon: $8.00 / half gallon + $5 bottle deposit
2 or more half gallons: $7.50 / half gallon + $5 bottle deposit per jar
If you return a clean empty jar when you buy a half gallon of milk, you do not pay the bottle deposit. You are also welcome to return more empty jars than you are buying, and deduct $5 for each extra empty jar. There is a chart in the farm store that helps you figure out your total price based on how much milk you buy and how many jars you return.
Contact info: NY State requires that we are able to contact all of our raw milk customers. Send us an email at oldfordfarm@oldfordfarm.com to let us know you are a new milk customer, or you can write your email address on the clipboard in the farm store.
How to buy:
If you are buying 5 jars or less, you can come to the store any time and purchase blank milk jars without ordering. Do NOT take milk jars with someone else's name on them. (These jars are pre-ordered.) There are almost always blank jars available. In the very rare event that we do not have enough milk to keep the store stocked all the time, we will email our customers to let them know (another reason to make sure you give us your email address).
If you are buying 6 jars or more, we prefer that you place an order. You can have a standing weekly order or just place one-time orders as needed. Email or call with your desired quantity and pick-up day. We will write your name on the jars reserved for you in washable marker. You may pick up your milk any time after 11 AM on your chosen day. If you have a standing order, feel free to change your day and quantity any time. Orders must be received 2 days in advance. Ordered milk is discounted to $7 / half gallon.
Glass jars: When you return your empty milk jars, it is imperative that they are completely clean and dry. Before filling jars, we sanitize them with a hot-water sanitizing machine. We cannot sanitize jars that are not already clean, so it is the customers’ responsibility to return clean jars. If we find unclean jars, we have to hand-wash them ourselves before sanitizing them. This is a huge inconvenience for us, so please take this seriously.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is raw milk safe to drink?
The safety of any food – whether that is raw milk, pasteurized milk, vegetables, or anything else – is dependent on the processes in which it was produced and handled. We could never make a blanket statement that we are 100% sure that any food we produce will always be free of pathogens. Nor can any supermarket, restaurant, etc. claim that about the food they are selling. Anything could happen even to the most diligent producer. However, the best thing any consumer can do is to minimize risk as much as possible, which means buying food which was produced with the best possible practices from an accountable supply chain. For all of our products, we believe that we implement the best possible practices. In terms of our milk production, we go to great lengths to keep our cows healthy and clean. Our milk parlor and milkhouse are pristine and our employees are well trained on procedures. We believe pasteurization is unnecessary under these conditions. Our milk gets tested monthly by NYS Department of Ag and Markets. Our family has been happily consuming the raw milk from our farm on a daily basis since we started the farm in 2009.
How long does the milk last?
The short answer is a week and a half. The long answer is, raw milk never really goes bad - the good bacteria in raw milk prevent the rancidity which happens in pasteurized milk. However, raw milk's little ecosystem of good bacteria slowly digests the milk sugars and this very slowly makes the milk turn sour. As long as you keep the milk refrigerated, you have at least a week and a half before tasting the sourness (though we've had milk go well over 2 weeks without tasting it.) Turning sour doesn’t make it unsafe to drink, but at some point (depending on your tastes) the sourness will be unpleasant to you. Unrelated to how long the milk lasts, we have an important tip for keeping your milk tasting good: milk should never be exposed to sunlight as it will negatively affect the flavors in a very short amount of time.
Do you sell raw cream, raw butter, or other raw dairy products?
In New York state, the only raw dairy products that can be legally sold are hard cheeses that have been aged over 60 days and milk. We offer both of these products in our farm store (the milk is produced here and the cheese is from other local dairy farms).
If you want to enjoy the benefits of raw dairy in other products, it is very easy to make them yourself from our milk. We give detailed descriptions of how to make your own cream, sour cream, butter, soft cheese, and yogurt here:
The safety of any food – whether that is raw milk, pasteurized milk, vegetables, or anything else – is dependent on the processes in which it was produced and handled. We could never make a blanket statement that we are 100% sure that any food we produce will always be free of pathogens. Nor can any supermarket, restaurant, etc. claim that about the food they are selling. Anything could happen even to the most diligent producer. However, the best thing any consumer can do is to minimize risk as much as possible, which means buying food which was produced with the best possible practices from an accountable supply chain. For all of our products, we believe that we implement the best possible practices. In terms of our milk production, we go to great lengths to keep our cows healthy and clean. Our milk parlor and milkhouse are pristine and our employees are well trained on procedures. We believe pasteurization is unnecessary under these conditions. Our milk gets tested monthly by NYS Department of Ag and Markets. Our family has been happily consuming the raw milk from our farm on a daily basis since we started the farm in 2009.
How long does the milk last?
The short answer is a week and a half. The long answer is, raw milk never really goes bad - the good bacteria in raw milk prevent the rancidity which happens in pasteurized milk. However, raw milk's little ecosystem of good bacteria slowly digests the milk sugars and this very slowly makes the milk turn sour. As long as you keep the milk refrigerated, you have at least a week and a half before tasting the sourness (though we've had milk go well over 2 weeks without tasting it.) Turning sour doesn’t make it unsafe to drink, but at some point (depending on your tastes) the sourness will be unpleasant to you. Unrelated to how long the milk lasts, we have an important tip for keeping your milk tasting good: milk should never be exposed to sunlight as it will negatively affect the flavors in a very short amount of time.
Do you sell raw cream, raw butter, or other raw dairy products?
In New York state, the only raw dairy products that can be legally sold are hard cheeses that have been aged over 60 days and milk. We offer both of these products in our farm store (the milk is produced here and the cheese is from other local dairy farms).
If you want to enjoy the benefits of raw dairy in other products, it is very easy to make them yourself from our milk. We give detailed descriptions of how to make your own cream, sour cream, butter, soft cheese, and yogurt here:
| easy_homemade_dairy_products.pdf |
Is your milk organic?
While we are not certified organic, we believe in the values behind organic principles and generally follow those guidelines, but we occasionally make a well thought-out exception. Under organic rules, if an animal is ever treated with an antibiotic or certain medications, that animal is no longer allowed to produce organic food and must be sold to a conventional farm. We believe there are situations in which an antibiotic or non-organic medication is the right thing to use. It doesn’t happen frequently, and we never use antibiotics prophylactically or out of laziness. But in the rare situation in which it is the best course of action, that is what we do, and we don’t think it makes sense to get rid of a member of our beloved herd when that happens. When a cow is treated with a medication, we strictly observe a period of milk withdrawal.
Are your cows grass-fed?
Our cows are grass-fed (fresh grass during the grazing season and hay in the winter) and supplemented with a small amount of certified organic grain. For a deep dive into our practices, see this page.
What is the A2 status of your cows?
First, an explanation of what this question means for those who don’t know. One of the proteins in milk, casein, has two variations, called A1 and A2. Each cow produces either all A1 proteins, or all A2 proteins, or half A1 and half A2 proteins. There is some evidence that A1 proteins can be detrimental to milk drinkers with leaky gut syndrome. For more information, there is a book called The Devil in the Milk which details this issue thoroughly.
Generally, the A2 status of a cow is related to its breed. Modern breeds like Holsteins tend to have all A1 genes, where heritage breeds tend to have all A2 genes. Our cows are Jerseys, and as a breed, Jerseys average out to be 75% A2. However, we have never had our individual cows tested, so our herd average could be higher or lower.
Do you deliver?
No, in New York State, raw milk can only be sold on the farm. If you live far away, consider organizing with some friends to take turns driving to the farm every week or so.
While we are not certified organic, we believe in the values behind organic principles and generally follow those guidelines, but we occasionally make a well thought-out exception. Under organic rules, if an animal is ever treated with an antibiotic or certain medications, that animal is no longer allowed to produce organic food and must be sold to a conventional farm. We believe there are situations in which an antibiotic or non-organic medication is the right thing to use. It doesn’t happen frequently, and we never use antibiotics prophylactically or out of laziness. But in the rare situation in which it is the best course of action, that is what we do, and we don’t think it makes sense to get rid of a member of our beloved herd when that happens. When a cow is treated with a medication, we strictly observe a period of milk withdrawal.
Are your cows grass-fed?
Our cows are grass-fed (fresh grass during the grazing season and hay in the winter) and supplemented with a small amount of certified organic grain. For a deep dive into our practices, see this page.
What is the A2 status of your cows?
First, an explanation of what this question means for those who don’t know. One of the proteins in milk, casein, has two variations, called A1 and A2. Each cow produces either all A1 proteins, or all A2 proteins, or half A1 and half A2 proteins. There is some evidence that A1 proteins can be detrimental to milk drinkers with leaky gut syndrome. For more information, there is a book called The Devil in the Milk which details this issue thoroughly.
Generally, the A2 status of a cow is related to its breed. Modern breeds like Holsteins tend to have all A1 genes, where heritage breeds tend to have all A2 genes. Our cows are Jerseys, and as a breed, Jerseys average out to be 75% A2. However, we have never had our individual cows tested, so our herd average could be higher or lower.
Do you deliver?
No, in New York State, raw milk can only be sold on the farm. If you live far away, consider organizing with some friends to take turns driving to the farm every week or so.