Cheese & Dairy Facts
Few consumers today have ever visited a farm or have family members active in dairy farming. But that doesn’t mean they don’t have questions. Following are a list of common practices on our farm and creamery designed to help you understand how our milk and cheeses get from our farm to your table.
Grazing
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On our dairy we practice rotational grazing. What is rotational grazing?
- Rotational grazing is a process whereby livestock are strategically moved to fresh paddocks, or partitioned pasture areas, to allow vegetation in previously grazed pastures to regenerate. Rotational grazing encourages an even distribution of grazing throughout a paddock, allowing resting periods in between rotations that help maintain the health of forage. On our dairy we rotate our cattle to new paddocks every 12 hours. This allows for grass regrowth and yummy, goodness for our cows.
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During the latter part of summer, when grass growth is at a minimum we also graze corn. Grazing corn removes our cows from grass pastures, insuring that they are not overgrazed. Grazing corn also provides adequate nutrition during the summer weather, when grass growth is slow.
On our dairy we also graze alfalfa. Grazing alfalfa provides a high quality forage for our cows, right in the field, no cutting or baling required!
Cow Comfort
A cow’s health is of utmost importance to us. Dairy farmers know that healthy, comfortable, and well-treated animals produce high-quality, wholesome dairy foods for people around the world.
Did you know that it takes us 3 hours to milk 391 head? That's pretty quick! We strive to get our cows back out and grazing as quickly as possible, so that they can get back to doing what they do best: being cows!
On HOT summer days, our main goal is to keep the cows cool and comfortable. We milk an hour later in the evenings and move the cows to shaded paddocks. Also we keep sprinklers and fans going in the holding pen during milking. It's all about cow comfort!
Cows lie down for many reasons. Generally, when the herd leader lies down the rest of the herd follows. Some people think that cows predict the weather by lying down just before a rain, this is partly true. In hot weather, they tend to stand more often. Standing exposes more surface area for them to dissipate heat. In cool weather they lie down more. Often it becomes cooler before a rain so that's how people made the association. They are smart, but not that smart!
It is important to note that dairy cows are not routinely treated with antibiotics. When illness requires that a cow be treated, antibiotics are administered according to strict FDA guidelines, which include withholding milk from sale. When a cow’s milk is withheld (it is dumped on our farm), she is given special care and attention separate from the rest of milking herd until her milk tests free of antibiotics. ALL milk is antibiotic free!
Cow Anatomy
Our cows are crossbred. Crossbred or crossbreeding is the mating of two individuals with different breed makeups. There are many advantages to crossbreeding, it simultaneously optimizes the advantages of the various breeds, like grazing ability on our farm.
Did you know the average cow produces 90 glasses of milk a day?
Cows have an acute sense of smell, and can smell something up to six miles away!
The average cow drinks from 30 - 50 gallons of water each day - about a bathtub's worth, and it takes a cow just 30 minutes!
Dairy cows can produce 125lbs of saliva a day. Gross!
Did you know cows only have teeth on the bottom?
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Cows spend eight hours per day eating, eight hours chewing their cud (regurgitated, partially digested food), and eight hours sleeping. The average cow chews at least 50 times per minute.
Did you know cows grow a special winter coat during the colder months to help keep them warm? It's thicker and shaggier compared to their shorter, sleeker summer coats.
Cows are ruminants, which are cud chewing mammals. Most people think cows have four stomachs, which is not true. They have just one stomach with four chambers – rumen, reticulum, omasum and abomasum. Their four-chambered stomach allows them to digest tough plant matter that would normally be indigestible.
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The first three stomachs process feed in a way that people cannot. Because of this unique digestive system, cows have the ability to convert plants that humans cannot eat into nutritious food, like milk.
1.) Rumen: holds up to 50 gallons of partially digested food. This is where cud comes from. Good bacteria in the rumen helps digest the cows food and provides protein for the cow.
2.) Reticulum: is called the hardware stomach because if cows accidentally eat hardware (like a piece of fencing scrap), it will often lodge here causing no further damage.
3.) Omasum is sort of like a filter.
4.) Abomasum which is like our stomach.
1.) Rumen: holds up to 50 gallons of partially digested food. This is where cud comes from. Good bacteria in the rumen helps digest the cows food and provides protein for the cow.
2.) Reticulum: is called the hardware stomach because if cows accidentally eat hardware (like a piece of fencing scrap), it will often lodge here causing no further damage.
3.) Omasum is sort of like a filter.
4.) Abomasum which is like our stomach.
At birth, the rumen represents about 35 percent of the total stomach compartments, and it increases to approximately 65 percent by weaning. However, for these changes to take place, calves need to consume adequate amounts and types of solid feed.
Dairy Facts
U.S. dairy farms are producing three times more milk today, as compared to 1960, with about half the number of dairy cows, reducing the total resources needed by the dairy industry.
Did you know that milk goes from cow to your fridge never being touched by human hands?!
It goes from cow to tank, from tank to truck, from truck to tank (or silo) at processing plant & from tank to product. At Edgewood Creamery, the process is much simpler: From cow to tank, from tank to truck, from truck to creamery, from creamery to product, now that's FRESH!
It goes from cow to tank, from tank to truck, from truck to tank (or silo) at processing plant & from tank to product. At Edgewood Creamery, the process is much simpler: From cow to tank, from tank to truck, from truck to creamery, from creamery to product, now that's FRESH!
Holstein cows produce milk with as little as 2.5% butterfat, while a Jersey cow’s milk can contain up to 4.9% butterfat. Our cows are crossbred, so they typically run between a 4.0% and a 4.5% butterfat!
Cheese Making
The cheesemaking process begins when solids in milk separate from whey. The more whey drained from the curds the drier the cheese will be.
It takes about 10 pounds of milk to make on pound of cheese.
When milk is heated in the beginning of the cheesemaking process, bacteria feast on the lactose & turn it into lactic acid.
Flocculation is a scientific term which essentially means particles coming out of suspension and forming a solid - in the cheesemaker's case, it means casein proteins coming out of suspension in the milk and forming curds.
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Artisan cheese is primarily handmade and produced in small batches by traditional, predominantly non-mechanical methods. Superior freshness, natural and local ingredients and attention to detail and excellence are all part of the artisan tradition. Artisan cheese makers support traditional jobs, healthy farming practices, and the noble art of making something carefully, beautifully, and skillfully.
Farmstead cheese is made only from the milk of the cheesemaker's own animals (cows, goats or sheep). Farmstead cheese is artisan cheese, but an artisan cheese is not necessarily a farmstead cheese. Our cheeses are both artisan, farmstead cheeses, because we only use milk produced on our dairy farm, and we process in our creamery, which is also located on the farm. |
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At Edgewood Creamery we are thankful for our cheesemakers Melissa Fletcher and Kelly Hayes, who delicately handcraft all of our artisan cheeses.
Cheese Facts
The term “farmstead” means the animals that produce the milk are from the same farm on which the cheese is made.
There is more lactose in younger cheeses such as ricotta or quark than in aged cheeses such as Gruyère or sharp cheddar.
Naturally aged cheeses are already low in lactose.
The yellowness of butter and cheese comes from the beta-carotene in the grass cows eat. Our cows are primarily grass-fed which in turn provides us with natural yellowness of our cheeses! ** Side note: the bright orange cheese you see in many grocery stores is heavily dyed!
A matchbox-size chunk of hard cheese constitutes about a third of an adult's recommended daily calcium requirement.
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Caseins and whey proteins in cheese can inhibit tooth decay and strengthen teeth.
Store cut cheese by wrapping it in waxed or parchment paper. This allows the cheese to breathe but retains its moisture.
Blue cheese has more salt than other cheese to keep quick-growing Penicillium from breaking down the interior too quickly.
Because of their high salt content, blue cheeses pair very well with sweet accompaniments like fresh fruits or compotes.
Cheese is a great source of Vitamin B12, which helps red blood cell development.
People crave cheese more than any other food! On average, one American consumes 33 pounds of cheese per year, The French: 53 pounds, and Greece: 72 pounds!
A cheese cave is a temperature and humidity-controlled space that provides an optimum environment for cheese storage & ripening.
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When storing softer cheese, it's important to flip it upside down to keep the moisture content consistent throughout.
When cheese is cold, the fat molecules contract and hold in molecules known as odorants, making the cheese less flavorful.
Milk proteins in cheese can neutralize plaque acids and enhance remineralization of tooth enamel.
A recent study concluded that high-fat cheese, whole milk, and low-fat milk had no appreciable effect on weight gain or loss. Another study this year even went as far as to say that full fat cheese was better for you than low fat cheese.
Milk Facts
Milk contains 9 essential nutrients, all of which contribute to growing bodies.
Looking for a post-workout drink? Chocolate milk has an optimal carbohydrate-to-protein ratio, making it an ideal beverage for an athlete.
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Organic vs. Regular Milk
- No nutritional difference - Both contain the same vitamin and minerals - ALL milk is required to be tested to the same standards by the USDA and FDA - Organic is costly An 8 oz. glass of milk has as much potassium as a small banana!
Milk helps build and maintain bone strength and has been found to boost muscle growth and support healthy weight.
Having a spicy lunch?
- Milk is great for cooling your mouth after eating spicy food. Milk products contain casein, a protein that cleanses burning taste buds. 9% of all milk produced is used for ice cream production. 90% of all Americans enjoy eating once cream at least once each year.
Our milk at Edgewood Creamery is cream-line milk. For those of you who don't know exactly what cream-line means, here you go:
- Cream-line Milk is one of the most natural forms of milk. It is pasteurized, just like most milk found on store shelves, but the biggest difference is that the milk is not homogenized. |
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- Homogenization is, briefly, the process after pasteurization where the milk is mixed and the cream line (or fat content) is permanently mixed into the body of the milk. Homogenization uses very high pressure to break down the fat molecules in milk into very small particles so that they can dissolve into the rest of the milk. Some believe that many of the health benefits of milk are lost during this process. Most importantly, many believe that milk loses its flavor during this process.
- Our milk is made through a traditional practice with a minimal amount of processing. Resulting in a healthier non-homogenized milk, retaining the proverbial “cream-line”.
- There is one notable con with non-homogenized creamline milk, which is the need to give it a slight shake before enjoying.
- Whole milk found in a typical store is normally 3.25% fat with added vitamins. Most cow milk has a higher fat content than 3.25%. In fact, our cow's milk averages around 4.25% fat, though this varies throughout the year.
- We do not add anything to our milk, so it is simply: MILK.
-We pasteurize our milk using a vat pasteurizer. We can pasteurize up to 465 gallons of milk at a time. We pasteurize at a low temperature, 147 degrees for 33 minutes, which is barely above the legal limit.
- Our milk is made through a traditional practice with a minimal amount of processing. Resulting in a healthier non-homogenized milk, retaining the proverbial “cream-line”.
- There is one notable con with non-homogenized creamline milk, which is the need to give it a slight shake before enjoying.
- Whole milk found in a typical store is normally 3.25% fat with added vitamins. Most cow milk has a higher fat content than 3.25%. In fact, our cow's milk averages around 4.25% fat, though this varies throughout the year.
- We do not add anything to our milk, so it is simply: MILK.
-We pasteurize our milk using a vat pasteurizer. We can pasteurize up to 465 gallons of milk at a time. We pasteurize at a low temperature, 147 degrees for 33 minutes, which is barely above the legal limit.
There are hormones in milk. Yes, you read that correctly. Every gallon of milk you buy in the store, regardless of its label, has hormones in it. But before you run over to the fridge and dump a gallon of milk down the drain, realize that the presence of hormones in milk is not a bad thing. Here’s why:
- Milk has hormones because it is a product of nature. Hormones are naturally present in all milk, whether it comes from a cow, a goat, or even a human.
- Hormones are just proteins, and most–up to 90 percent of them, in fact –are destroyed through the process of pasteurization. The small amount of protein that may be left after pasteurization gets broken down through digestion in your stomach, just like protein in other foods.
- There are hormones in almost all of the food we eat. Lettuce has hormones, for instance, and cabbage actually has a very high level of hormones.
- Hormones are never added to milk. Most dairy farmers do not give their cows a supplemental hormone, called rBST, to increase milk production. The Midwest Dairy Association reports that only 30 percent of U.S. dairy farmers choose to use rbST with their herds, accounting for 20 to 25 percent of cows. Notably, rBST is not added to the milk itself, but rather is administered to some cows in some herds. Repeated studies by the FDA have found rBST to be a safe and effective way to increase milk production and ensure a plentiful milk supply.
- Farmers are consumers, too. We would never add something harmful to the food supply that is unsafe or dangerous because we eat the same foods that other consumers do.
- On our dairy we do not administer added hormones to our cattle.
