I recently was introduced to your site by my niece. We have recently been changing our diet to organic. This is a slow process as we are a large family. But we are doing it! We found a few farms to buy organic beef and chicken. And can’t wait till spring to plant a garden and also check out local produce!

We also have found a great farm that sells organic milk….it’s called Happy Cow!!! Of course it was a change for us as we were used to low fat milk and soymilk.

I added water at first to the milk so that it wasn’t as heavy. We have 7 children and most of them like it! (unfortunately the older ones age 23 and 22 buy their own ‘bad’ milk to drink!:( they still live at home) We also have switched cheeses to Happy Cow cheese! I love it!

Kelly

I’ve been following NT and WAPF principles for about 8 months now and I’m definitely a believer in nutrient dense foods. I do buy raw milk, but not cream or half n half b/c it is so much more expensive and we drink it with our morning coffee. Plus I’ll use it in the occasional recipe where it’s going to get heated up anyways.

Sometimes I wonder if there is something I eat a lot of, can I not afford to get the natural/organic version? or can I not afford NOT to get it? (Do you know what I mean? )

I guess UHT half n half is one of my compromises…. is it a reasonable one? (just curious of your opinion!)

Kerry Gold butter is listed as a good brand of butter. Costco sells it for a good price too.

You can get the shopping guide from a local chapter usually or directly from WAPF. I think they cost $2.

Lisa

The book that convinced my husband was “The Untold Story of Milk”
It give you a lot of the historical background of milk and pasteurization and also a lot of the science. It probably isn’t perfect and this is controversial topic, but it is a good resource and starting point to get the arguments and questions formed and somewhat answered for at least on side of the equation.

If you choose to do raw milk the most important things are to know your source. Really get to know what issues are important in good milk production and consumerism. Things like what the cows eat, how they are raised, what if any “drugs” are they given, is their feed organic, does it have soy, is the pasture rotated, is it fertilized, GMO grasses, etc. How does the farmer milk, clean the equipment, cool the milk, store the milk, etc. Also, when you get raw milk, you really need to keep the cold chain.

I know the Warnke’s at Our Farm and Dairy personally and they are amazing farmers, so do your research, ask them questions and feel confident that they are a good fit for your family. I will tell you that they love what they do and they care about the animals and their members!!

Also, Peg Beals wrote a great book for Raw Milk consumers about handling milk. You can get it right from Peg. She is part of the MI Fresh Milk Council, so you can probably find her contact info online.

Also, check out David Gumpert’s Blog http://www.thecompletepatient.com as he writes extensively about raw milk and you will get a good view of all the issues and there are readers who leave comments from both sides of the arguments for and against raw milk, so it is a good resource.

Calder’s which was mentioned above is a good brand, they aren’t organic but they do pasture and low-vat pasteurize their milk . Read labels on their other products as many have artificial ingredients, but their cream and whole milk are great.

Stay away from Horizon or many store brand organic milk. They are really factory farmed and Horizon and Aurora (many store brands like Costco and Walmart are Aurora milk) are being sued by the Organic Consumers Association and have been cited numerous times for violations. You can read more on this at the Organic Consumers Association’s website.

Dry Milk Powder, not only is it oxidized cholesterol but it also is processed in such a way to form free radicals which is the equivelant of MSG. I react to it with migraines and am very allergic to MSG, so beware of it in many items, including a lot of meat products (even from reputable farmers, always read labels).

In Clarkston, MI there is also Cook’s farm Dairy and it isn’t organic but is pastured and better than store milk!!

Lisa, I love going to the meetings and being involved when I can, but if I add anything else on my “to-do” list I’ll go crazy! I’d love to be a chapter leader someday, though.