What you **NEED** to know about grain fed beef (plastic, pump, regulations)
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Where was that story I saw two days ago on the Discovery Channel... ah, yes, here it is... GM Crop Genes Contaminate Mexican Corn: Discovery News Seems that the disputed discovery of GE cross-pollination corn in Mexican corn products turns out to be true, and they are NOT happy.
It was only a matter of time before this happned. It will happen with all crops at some point. I am glad I never eat corn directly anyway.
I spent a summer drinking unpasteurized raw milk from a neighbors bulk tank when we lived in northern NH. It was like putting half & half on the cereal. I miss it a lot.
We are reaping the crop of agribusiness grown from the seeds of supporting farmers. I still think smaller farms should be supported but I do not see why our money should help GE create things that benefit their profits without any consideration for what it might be doing to us and the environment.
raw milk tastes fantastic when compared to the absolute sh*t that is in the stores.
I agree with the raw milk taste, but not the unpasteurized part. Over the past few years the allowable bacteria standards have been reduced by a third, so our costs of producing milk have gone up considerably, at least in regards to teat dips and stuff. In order to comply, we have to use medical grade iodine both before and after milking along with smaller strainers and filters.
Inside the parlor we have improved things as well, seldom washing down with water which just spreads bacteria that much more. We use better clean-up methods and of course when we are done milking do a through job with acids and rinses. That is a long way of saying,we are 3 times ahead of where we were a decade ago...
BUT if we stopped pasteurization of the milk supply, the number of deaths attributed to ecoli and other bacterias would sky rocket.
Ask Odwalla about their old theory about how pasteurization made their juice taste better. The bacteria count was so high the US Military refused to buy it, and then an outbreak of ecoli began to kill toddlers. Apparently migrant workers were picking up apples that had been lying on the ground near deer feces. They pasteurize all their juice now.
The reason the milk from the stores tastes so bad...and I agree with you on the taste...is that it is cut heavily with water. That is a nice kick in the pant's isn't it? The price hits 24 dollars a hundred weight for farmers and its $4.90 in the stores. Now they pay us 16 dollars a hundred weight and its still as high as $4.20 in the stores...all the while cutting it with water.
Another reason the milk has changed in taste is that the old bonus we used to get for butterfat content is now gone. We get a little more for higher butterfat, but the big bonus is on high protein levels now. That is because they use protein rich whey to put in sports drinks. We feed our cows high protein diets (grass) to get that bonus, but have taken the Jersey's out of the herds and run primarily Holsteins which give more milk (and do well at getting protein into the milk. This has dropped the butterfat content which was what gave the milk its flavor in the first place.
If you want to buy great tasting milk, get it from a local dairy straight out of the tank...but it should be pasteurized before you drink it. The taste is not diminished by pasteurization, but by the way the good stuff is separated at the creamery and then metered back in along with "fortified vitamins".
(Note: We do not give our cows artificial growth hormones and I do not know any dairy farmers in Maine that do).
I noticed that the raw and pasteurized organic milks that hadn't been futzed with (separated, fortified or any other bizarre supermarket practices) tasted pretty much the same and had the same texture. The only slight difference was that the pastuerized kind made me a tiny bit phlegmy and I got a little gassy... that can be put down to destroying the "good" bacteria along with the "bad" during pasteurization. Of course, unless you are 100% certain that there aren't too many "bad" bacteria in the milk, you most definitely do not want to drink it raw just for the comparitively small benefit of the "good" bacteria.
I've been continuing my milk odyssey lately, sampling different milk from different farms and different breeds fed different foods. What I've found, and this is just my personal experience, nothing scientific at all about it is:
1. Organic milk from any species bothers my system much less than conventional supermarket milk
2. Organic milk from primarily pasture-raised animals bothers my system even less
3. Goat milk bothers me the least of all, then sheep, then cow... but a blend of all 3 tastes great, has great texture and my symptoms are equivalent to just goat milk
4. Pastuerization didn't really make much of difference in increasing my symptoms, but separating out the cream did... when the cream was removed, the skim milk phlegmed me up
5. One farmer vitamin fortifies his organic milk even though it is only flash pasteurized and is not skimmed... this milk made me vomit
6. Another conventional farmer does not fortify his milk, only flash pasteurizes it and doesn't skim it, but does feed his cows a larger amount of grain vs. grass and also gives his cows antibiotics and growth hormones... this milk made me vomit and caused GI distress for 4 days.
The conclusion that came to is that the following practices make milk funky, in increasing order of "evilness": pasteurization (negligible), separating out the milk fat, substituting artificial fortifications, feeding a primarily high grain diet, and finally anitbiotics & growth hormones (violently ill).
I can't explain it, and I'm sure it probably doesn't happen to everyone, but that's my personal experience. I also find it interesting to note that the effect on flavor and texture of the milk follows the exact same pattern... but that's entirely subjective too
I agree with the raw milk taste, but not the unpasteurized part. Over the past few years the allowable bacteria standards have been reduced by a third, so our costs of producing milk have gone up considerably, at least in regards to teat dips and stuff. In order to comply, we have to use medical grade iodine both before and after milking along with smaller strainers and filters.
Inside the parlor we have improved things as well, seldom washing down with water which just spreads bacteria that much more. We use better clean-up methods and of course when we are done milking do a through job with acids and rinses. That is a long way of saying,we are 3 times ahead of where we were a decade ago...
BUT if we stopped pasteurization of the milk supply, the number of deaths attributed to ecoli and other bacterias would sky rocket.
Ask Odwalla about their old theory about how pasteurization made their juice taste better. The bacteria count was so high the US Military refused to buy it, and then an outbreak of ecoli began to kill toddlers. Apparently migrant workers were picking up apples that had been lying on the ground near deer feces. They pasteurize all their juice now.
The reason the milk from the stores tastes so bad...and I agree with you on the taste...is that it is cut heavily with water. That is a nice kick in the pant's isn't it? The price hits 24 dollars a hundred weight for farmers and its $4.90 in the stores. Now they pay us 16 dollars a hundred weight and its still as high as $4.20 in the stores...all the while cutting it with water.
Another reason the milk has changed in taste is that the old bonus we used to get for butterfat content is now gone. We get a little more for higher butterfat, but the big bonus is on high protein levels now. That is because they use protein rich whey to put in sports drinks. We feed our cows high protein diets (grass) to get that bonus, but have taken the Jersey's out of the herds and run primarily Holsteins which give more milk (and do well at getting protein into the milk. This has dropped the butterfat content which was what gave the milk its flavor in the first place.
If you want to buy great tasting milk, get it from a local dairy straight out of the tank...but it should be pasteurized before you drink it. The taste is not diminished by pasteurization, but by the way the good stuff is separated at the creamery and then metered back in along with "fortified vitamins".
(Note: We do not give our cows artificial growth hormones and I do not know any dairy farmers in Maine that do).
Great post! I understand there are two sides to every story and for you as a farmer producing the milk have a lot of work you must do that consumers such as myself take for granted.
I think raw milk should be allowed to be sold but come with a warning on it. The risks of a healthy adult dying from ecoli or salmonella is very little but an unpleasant experience indeed. The consumption of raw milk is increasing though and have not heard of any deaths yet attributed to it. I would not advise raw milk for toddlers or the elderly since contracting salmonella or ecoli would/could be fatal. Then again the elderly and children are also the most likely to die from anything including the flu.
If you can get your hands on truly raw "clean" milk I believe the benifits outweigh the risks. The pastuerized milk is getting lots of ppl sick too but its more of a slow process. Pastuerized dairy is a huge allergen right up there with gluten in soy as far as indigestability.
Getting raw milk is so difficult that honestly I just stick with raw milk cheese as the only dairy I consume.
As far as juice goes I dont know since I wont drink it. Too much sugar, no fiber. I would rather have chocolate if thats the case :-P
I noticed that the raw and pasteurized organic milks that hadn't been futzed with (separated, fortified or any other bizarre supermarket practices) tasted pretty much the same and had the same texture. The only slight difference was that the pastuerized kind made me a tiny bit phlegmy and I got a little gassy... that can be put down to destroying the "good" bacteria along with the "bad" during pasteurization. Of course, unless you are 100% certain that there aren't too many "bad" bacteria in the milk, you most definitely do not want to drink it raw just for the comparitively small benefit of the "good" bacteria.
I've been continuing my milk odyssey lately, sampling different milk from different farms and different breeds fed different foods. What I've found, and this is just my personal experience, nothing scientific at all about it is:
1. Organic milk from any species bothers my system much less than conventional supermarket milk
2. Organic milk from primarily pasture-raised animals bothers my system even less
3. Goat milk bothers me the least of all, then sheep, then cow... but a blend of all 3 tastes great, has great texture and my symptoms are equivalent to just goat milk
4. Pastuerization didn't really make much of difference in increasing my symptoms, but separating out the cream did... when the cream was removed, the skim milk phlegmed me up
5. One farmer vitamin fortifies his organic milk even though it is only flash pasteurized and is not skimmed... this milk made me vomit
6. Another conventional farmer does not fortify his milk, only flash pasteurizes it and doesn't skim it, but does feed his cows a larger amount of grain vs. grass and also gives his cows antibiotics and growth hormones... this milk made me vomit and caused GI distress for 4 days.
The conclusion that came to is that the following practices make milk funky, in increasing order of "evilness": pasteurization (negligible), separating out the milk fat, substituting artificial fortifications, feeding a primarily high grain diet, and finally anitbiotics & growth hormones (violently ill).
I can't explain it, and I'm sure it probably doesn't happen to everyone, but that's my personal experience. I also find it interesting to note that the effect on flavor and texture of the milk follows the exact same pattern... but that's entirely subjective too
Your not alone. A good majority of Americans are allergic to pastuerized milk. I know for farmers its much safer to pastuerize to avoid lawsuits, extend shelf life and be able to get away with less then perfect sanitary coniditions. All I want is the option to buy raw milk. Its my body and I know the associated risks.
----I know for farmers its much safer to pastteurize to avoid lawsuits,extend shelf life, and be able to get away with less than perfect sanitary conditions "
" get away with " ???????????
As a dairy farmer, I find that insinuation downright insulting.
My dairy farm gets State inspected twice a year and EVERY time milk leaves my farm a sample is taken with the lab reports sent to me .
Regarding raw milk----------a few years back the state shut down a dairy farmer who was selling raw milk to his many customers. He would deliver the milk to a city a few times a week.
His customers were very upset he got shut down cuz they said in the paper that the milk tasted so good, was so wholesome, was so healthy.
the reason he was selling his "delicous" milk to his gullible customers was he had no other market.
The processing plant no longer would accept his milk cuz the state pulled his permit for having milk with a bacteria and scc higher than the legal limit.
Yup, and customers bragged about how wholesome and healthy that milk was.
as PT Barnum said-------"there is a sucker born every minute"
----I know for farmers its much safer to pastteurize to avoid lawsuits,extend shelf life, and be able to get away with less than perfect sanitary conditions "
" get away with " ???????????
As a dairy farmer, I find that insinuation downright insulting.
My dairy farm gets State inspected twice a year and EVERY time milk leaves my farm a sample is taken with the lab reports sent to me .
Regarding raw milk----------a few years back the state shut down a dairy farmer who was selling raw milk to his many customers. He would deliver the milk to a city a few times a week.
His customers were very upset he got shut down cuz they said in the paper that the milk tasted so good, was so wholesome, was so healthy.
the reason he was selling his "delicous" milk to his gullible customers was he had no other market.
The processing plant no longer would accept his milk cuz the state pulled his permit for having milk with a bacteria and scc higher than the legal limit.
Yup, and customers bragged about how wholesome and healthy that milk was.
as PT Barnum said-------"there is a sucker born every minute"
The fact is raw milk is healthier then pastuerized milk (if clean, BIG IF). There is nothing "guillable" about that. You seem quite bitter that some of us "suckers" prefer raw milk. I think the real suckers are the ones going to the grocery store buying that "milk". Pastuerized dairy gets a lot of ppl sick. Many more ppl suffer greatly due to long term effects of pastuerized dairy then they ever have from raw milk. PPL who cut out pastuerized dairy from their diet often find their immune systems become stronger and are less likely to develop other illnesses due to the stress that it puts on their body. Its right up there with sugar in terms of stressing the immune system.
I had no intentions of offending you but pastuerazation does make your life as a farmer easier by extending the shelf life of the milk and being able to have less then perfect conditions. Nothing wrong with that but there is also nothing wrong with me wanting the choice to buy raw milk.
OK, I'm a little confused here by all of the terminology.
When I helped on the goat farm, we would milk the goats and then take the milk inside and heat it through to 96 degrees for 15 minutes. Supposedly this killed all of the bad bacteria. The owner called it "pasteurization". It was the only thing we did to the milk. No strainers or anything else - we were told that 'solids' in fresh milk was indicative of a bacterial infection in the goat, usually in the mammary glands, and we never used any milk with solids in it.
I have friends who have milk cows for their own use and they never do more than use a standard bag wash - if that. I can only assume that when you talk about water spreading bacteria, you mean from animal to animal, using the same water to wash the bags of several or many cows?
CleanCutHippe---------if anyone buys raw milk from a farmer, do you demand to see the lab report on his milk?
If not,why not ?
Don't you want to know the butterfat %, prottien % and bacteria count of what you are ingesting into your body ?
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