Want a Dairy Goat? Here's a Guide to Breeds

by: Jill Richardson

Fri Oct 07, 2011 at 17:45:05 PM PDT

According to Mother Earth News, here are some key differences between these breeds.

Alpines: Upright ears and long necks, medium to large body, good milker. Coats are two-toned, usually black and white.

Oberhaslis: Usually bay (reddish brown) with black markings but sometimes completely black. This is a medium to small breed that doesn't produce as much milk as other breeds.

Saanens: The "Holstein" of the goat world. The animals are larger, usually all white, and produce a LOT of milk (for a goat).

Toggenburgs: Colors range from fawn to deep chocolate. This is a medium-size breed with long lactations. "Their inquisitive nature can sometimes become quite challenging."

LaManchas: Unique because they have no visible external ears. They are calm, gentle, and good milkers. They are a larger breed that comes in many colors.

Nubians: The "Jersey" of the goat world. These goats have floppy ears and "an energetic disposition some say is just plain stubborn." They come in many colors and produce milk with high butterfat content.

Nigerian Dwarf: This is a West African native that is "a surprisingly good milker." A full size Nigerian Dwarf goat will weigh only 30 to 50 pounds compared to 120 to 135 pounds for females in a non-dwarf breed. They are known for friendly personalities and they come in many colors. They give birth easily and produce milk with very high protein and butterfat content. These goats produce 1-2 quarts of milk per day.

One last useful piece of advice from this article: Buy a goat locally so that you get one already adapted to the climate where you live. (I recommend the entire Mother Earth News article, if you are serious about keeping dairy goats.)

Goats: The New WMD

by: Jill Richardson

Wed Oct 05, 2011 at 21:26:13 PM PDT

Are you terrified? You should be! Because these seemingly adorable little goats.... produce RAW MILK!

The City of San Diego is now undergoing a massive revamping of its urban ag laws. Today the city council reviewed the proposed new laws covering farmers markets, chickens, bees, and goats. Only the goats might not happen after all. They are, um, dangerous.

This morning, a letter came out from the county explaining that goats produce raw milk and therefore should not be allowed. It encouraged people to instead purchase their milk, either raw or pasteurized, from legal dairies. We have exactly two dairies left in our county and neither sell to the public. Legal raw milk options are also limited and - I would contend - unacceptable.

A huge crowd of citizens came to the meeting in support of the new laws and requesting tweaks to the proposed language of the laws here and there. One woman who spoke in favor of goats at the meeting gave the council a quick lesson in pasteurization. She brought a timer, a thermometer, and a pot and explained how one should bring the milk the required temperature for 30 minutes and then plunge it into an ice bath to cool it rapidly. The council members laughed, since it is obviously very simple for people to pasteurize their own milk if they wish to.

I focused my remarks on ducks, which were left out of the proposed law, but sent in written comments that read, in part:

I'm quite upset about the notion that goats should be outlawed because they might produce raw milk. Please consider that people are permitted to buy raw meat under the expectation that they will cook it. What's more, under U.S. law, it's legal for up to 49.9% of ground turkey samples tested to test positive for salmonella. This is disturbing as ground meat can have pathogens in the center and not just on the surfaces of the meat, which means consumers can become ill unless they cook the meat extremely thoroughly. When Consumers Union tested a random sampling of fresh supermarket broilers (chicken) in 22 states, 66 percent were found contaminated with either campylobacter, salmonella, or both. Most of the pathogens detected were resistant to at least one antibiotic. And consumers are trusted to cook this tainted meat sufficiently to avoid illness and allowed to risk it if they want to cook their turkey burgers rare instead of well done. Why are we not trusted to produce and/or pasteurize our own milk?

What's more, the most dangerous food statistically is not raw milk but raw oysters - and those remain legal.

I find it unreasonable enough that U.S. citizens in much of the country cannot legally buy raw milk, but banning people from owning a goat simply because you do not want them to drink raw milk from their own goat is one step too far. Even in states with very strict laws against the sale of raw milk, farmers and their families can drink milk from their own animals without pasteurizing it.

Bolivia Diaries: Day 9, Part 1 - A "Model" Dairy in Cochabamba

by: Jill Richardson

Tue Sep 27, 2011 at 20:47:31 PM PDT

ACTION: Save Organic Dairy, Stop GE Alfalfa

by: Jill Richardson

Wed Jan 19, 2011 at 14:06:43 PM PST

As the Obama administration moves closer to giving a green light to GE alfalfa, they are talking a lot about "coexistence," i.e. finding ways that both organic and farmers growing GE crops can live peacefully side by side. This is a nice thought, of course, but if there's one rock solid scientific observation about GE crops it is that they cannot be contained. Mistakes happen. A lot. So much so that despite GE corn growing nowhere NEAR the birthplace of corn in Mexico (at least, not legally), landrace corn in Oaxaca was found with contamination from GE corn.

A wonderful backgrounder on this issue can be found on the Food and Water Watch site.

Take action to stop GE alfalfa here

The Yogurt Routine

by: mental_masala

Sun Jan 09, 2011 at 10:27:51 AM PST

Of all the things I tried in my kitchen in 2010, learning to make yogurt was by far the most valuable. I had tried once or twice in previous years, with rather poor results, but then in early 2010 I figured it out.  Euclidarms* wrote a long piece about his yogurt technique at La Vida Locavore that really opened my eyes, and soon thereafter Cherie Picked helped me a bit more.  By the middle of 2010 I had developed a system that worked for me and settled into a loose routine of home yogurt making.

I'm probably saving a good deal of money (perhaps $1 per quart), but what's more important to me is that I'm avoiding a good deal of plastic (like the tubs in the manipulated photo above). Instead of bringing home a new plastic container of yogurt every week, I buy milk in a reusable glass bottle or a compostable paper carton, thus making a big dent in plastic use (and of the piles of plastic in my container cupboard).

Big Victory Against rbGH!

by: Jill Richardson

Thu Sep 30, 2010 at 18:32:09 PM PDT

Save for Ohio. Ohio was the one last state where it looked like they might win. Ultimately the fight went to the courts. Today brought BIG news of a court decision in Ohio. The less significant news out of the court is that milk in Ohio can still say "rbGH-free" but it must also contain an FDA disclaimer saying "[t]he FDA has determined that no significant difference has been shown between milk derived from rbST-supplemented and non-rbST-supplemented cows."

Now, here's the BIG news. The court challenged the FDA's finding that there is "no measurable compositional difference" between milk from rbGH-treated cows and milk from untreated cows. According to those who have worked on this issue for nearly two decades now (maybe more), the FDA's claim that there was no compositional difference between milk from rbGH-treated and untreated cows was THE MAJOR roadblock to any good regulation. And the court finally struck it down, citing three reasons why the milk differs: 1. Increased levels of the hormone IGF-1, 2. A period of milk with lower nutritional quality during each lactation, and 3. Increased somatic cell counts (i.e. more pus in the milk).

Below, you will find the exact language of the court's ruling, as well as testimony submitted to the FDA's Veterinary Medicine Advisory Committee all the way back in 1993 by Michael Hansen, Senior Scientist at Consumers' Union. Amazing how it only took 17 years to get the truth legally recognized.

The Dairy Antitrust Hearing in Madison

by: Jill Richardson

Sun Jun 27, 2010 at 23:57:07 PM PDT

There's also an article by the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinal with the headline "Farmers plead for help as milk prices destroy profits Hundreds gather for hearing at UW-Madison" that includes, of course, pictures of protesters in cow costumes. (Side note: I seriously wouldn't be surprised if one of the cows in these pictures happens to be a friend of mine.) Here's their brief summary of the hearing:

Dairy farmers are being squeezed out of business as other sectors of the food industry demand a greater share of the consumer's dollar, farmers attending a federal hearing testified Friday.

The current system leaves dairy farmers with little or no profit, several said at a U.S. Department of Justice hearing on antitrust issues in the dairy industry. The hearing attracted hundreds of farmers from around the country to the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

"What we are hearing is a consistent message, which has not always been the case. Dairy producers, large and small, are hurting," U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said at the hearing.

In the past 10 years, the number of U.S. dairy farms has fallen from 111,000 to fewer than 65,000, Vilsack said.

Some of that has come from farm consolidations and voluntary retirements. But much of the loss has come from farmers who have been forced out of business, especially in the past two years.

The article's great and I recommend reading it. Below, I am also featuring a statement by Sen. Feingold (who attended the hearing) and a press release from Farm Aid.

Cuba Diaries: Day 9, Part 2

by: Jill Richardson

Tue May 25, 2010 at 11:39:36 AM PDT

Previous Cuba diaries:
Day 1: Arrival in Havana
Day 2: Pinar del Rio
Day 3: Havana, Cienfuegos, and Villa Clara
Day 4, Part 1: Villa Clara to Sancti Spiritus
Day 4, Part 2: Sancti Spiritus
Day 5: Sancti Spiritus to Havana
Day 6: Ration Books
Day 7: Reflections After One Week in Cuba
Day 8: A Photo Tour of Havana
Day 9, Part 1: Urban Farming in Havana

Bonus Diaries:
Cuban Cars
Cuban Houses
State Propaganda

From My Fellow Traveler, Canadian Journalist Jennifer Cockrall-King:
The Gardens Are Greener Over There... In Cuba
A lesson from Cuba: Farmer-to-Farmer Movement, traditional knowledge sharing
How's the Food in Cuba, You Ask?

Thank You, USTR Ron Kirk, For Kicking American Dairy Farmers While They Are Down

by: Jill Richardson

Sun May 02, 2010 at 00:15:01 AM PDT

US Trade Rep Ron Kirk just made news by rejecting calls by Senators Feingold, Crapo, Specter and 27 other Senators to leave dairy out of the deal. FYI, Kirk served on the board of Dean Foods, one of the largest and most powerful corporations in the dairy industry, until he was appointed USTR last year.

In their letter to Kirk, the Senators wrote, "We have been informed that losses to U.S. dairy producers may total up to $20 billion over the first decade of the agreement if U.S. dairy restrictions on exports from New Zealand are fully phased out in the TPP."

Get rbGH Out of Our Ice Cream

by: Jill Richardson

Fri Mar 12, 2010 at 13:07:33 PM PST

Breyers and Dreyers have one thing in common, besides names that rhyme. Neither is rbGH-free, and thus far both have resisted consumer campaigns asking them to go rbGH-free. Nevermind that the artificial growth hormone is banned by Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and all 27 nations of the EU. And the American Public Health Association and American Nurses Association also officially oppose rBGH, and the former president of the AMA recommended that hospitals only serve rBGH-free milk. And that it's linked to some human cancers and increased human twinning. Plus, there's the increased rate of mastitis in cows injected in rbGH, which means more antibiotics... and more pus in the milk. (Yum. I'd like mine with some whipped cream, chocolate sauce, and a cherry on top.)

Breyers and Dreyer's are the two largest ice cream producers. Breyers, whose labels say "All natural," also includes Good Humor, Klondike Bars and Popsicle. Dreyer's includes Haagen Dazs, Nestle and Edy's.

Breyers and Dreyer's have already received thousands of messages asking them to go rBGH-free, but haven't responded yet. We know they're having discussions on this and every e-mail brings us one step closer to their doing the right thing. So here's what you can do:

Breyers: Email U.S. Ice Cream (which includes Breyers, Good Humor, Klondike Bars, and Popsicle) or call them using the numbers below:
BREYERS: (800) 931-2826
GOOD HUMOR: (800) 931-2854
KLONDIKE: (800) 931-2830
POPSICLE: (800) 931-2849

Dreyers: Email Dreyers (which includes Haagen Dazs, Nestle, and Edy's) or call:
DREYER'S (877) 437-3937
EDY's (888) 590-3397
NESTLE (800) 225-2270
HAAGEN DAZS (800) 225-2270

And in the meantime, eat organic ice cream or go for Ben & Jerry's (which is already rbGH-free).

Dairy Farmers Need Immediate Action to Survive

by: Jill Richardson

Tue Mar 02, 2010 at 11:34:29 AM PST

Another farmer said that his 40 cows grossed over $80k in 2008 but under $50k in 2009. His federal assistance for 2009 was $6k, which is pathetic considering his shortfall of tens of thousands of dollars. He works 90-100 hours a week on his farm and his wife works at Wal-Mart. Still, he qualifies for Medicaid and food stamps, which he feels is "humiliating."

Others spoke about dairy farmers around them going out of business, which in turn put the local businesses that support dairy farms out of business. For the remaining farmers, this is a huge problem as now they don't have local sources of numerous things they need. One said she felt that the U.S. government obviously does not think that the U.S. needs dairy farmers, based on their policies and statements. She thinks it's their policy to put U.S. dairy farmers out of business.

These farmers are not unique. Today, they are the norm. In 2009, the average dairy farm lost $270,000. In 2010, they will lose a projected $240,000. To put that in perspective, last year's lost was about $.90 per gallon.  Costs went up by 35% in 2009 while the price of milk received by farmers went down 45%. The farmers say the solution is passing Senate bill 1645 and a companion bill in the House. This bill was sponsored by Arlen Specter. Please, please call or write your Senators and ask them to co-sponsor S. 1645.

More Doctors Drink Milk with rbGH Than Any Other Synthetic Hormone

by: Jill Richardson

Wed Feb 24, 2010 at 23:21:47 PM PST

However, it turns out that a few bits of the paper are actually false.

The paper claims, for instance, that the safety of rbGH is endorsed by the American Medical Association (AMA)... [The] AMA has no policy on rbGH and offers no such endorsement. Instead, they note the April 2008 AMA newsletter cites past president Ron Davis saying "Hospitals should......use milk produced without recombinant bovine growth hormone".

The paper also lists false endorsements by the American Cancer Society and the American Association of Pediatrics. How did such false statements get into the paper? One of the authors, David Clemmons, called the AMA, the AAP and the ACS endorsements "technically untrue". He says,  "We counted endorsement as failure to oppose rbGH."

There is, however, one endorsement that I don't doubt is true. The American Council on Science and Health. They might sound scientific and unbiased, but check out their long list of corporate sponsors. Ditto on the International Food Information Council. So, don't worry Elanco, we believe that any endorsement you claim you've gotten from a corporate funded astroturf organization is totally true.

Additionally, the Center for Food Safety put out a press release on this matter, which I've included below.

Yogurt, Pefected

by: euclidarms

Sat Feb 20, 2010 at 04:59:54 AM PST

I'm always looking for ways to simpifly our yogurt making process. We make a quart each week with milk and cream we get delivered from our grassfed dairy, South Mountain Creamery. Until recently, I used a fairly rigorous process of bringing a mix of "creamtop" (unhomegenized) milk and heavy cream to 200 degrees on the stove top, then lowering the heat on the stove and keeping the milk at that temperature for about 20 minutes, monitoring frequently with my instant-read thermometer to make sure it didn't overheat. Then I would put the pot in a bath of cold water and quickly lower the temperature to 120 before mixing in my bacteria culture.

Well, sometimes I got distracted and the milk did overheat. Or maybe I just got tired of taking the milk's temperature all the time. And the whole water bath thing is a bit of a hassle, as well as a waste of water. In any case, I've found that my yogurt comes out just as fine--thick and creamy--if I just bring the mix to that magic 200 degrees, then turn off the stove and let the milk cool to 120 degrees on its own. Voila: I don't have to do hardly any work at all. The yogurt makes itself.

Sometimes the lazy way is also the most effective and fool-proof. The point of heating the yogurt is to make it thick. If you were thinking it's the amount of starter culture you add to the mix that thickens it, you'd be wrong. It's the heat, and the amount of time heat is applied. This binds the proteins in the milk together, resulting in thickness. So letting the temperature rise slowly, then deline slowly, gives those proteins plenty of time to do the necessary binding.

Still, this method didn't seem entirely simple enough. Is it possible to make yogurt this way if you don't have an instant-read thermomenter? Before I answer that, I would urge you to get an an instant-read thermometer if you don't have one already. It is an essential kitchen tool. That's why you see chefs walking around with one stuck in the pocket of their chef's jacket.

But, yes, I think it is possible to make yogurt without actually measuring the temperature of the milk. When the milk gets to 200 degrees, there should be a fairly thick layer of foam on top. The milk won't be bubbling--you don't want to boil it, at which point the proteins will separate. But there will be foam. Then simply turn off the burner and let the milk rest until it is just warm--not hot--to the touch. This might not be exactly 120 degrees. But the point is, bacteria are killed around 140 degrees, and the last thing you want to do is kill your starter culture when you add it to the milk. You won't get any yogurt at all if the bacteria are dead. Better to err on the cooler side.

So this is my new method for making our weekly yogurt: To make enough yogurt to fill a quart-size canning jar, first put two heaping tablespoons of last week's yogurt in a small bowl and set it aside on the kitchen counter to come up to temperature and activate the bacteria. If you don't have yogurt already, you can use any plain yogurt from the store with active cultures in it. We started with a small container of "Icelandic-style" yogurt. It was expensive, but incredibly delicious, with a distinctive tang.

Next, measure 3 cups of the best whole milk you can find, then add 3/4 cup heavy cream (the cream is optional--you can use milk only if you like.) Pour this into a heavy saucepan and heat on the lowest setting on the stove. We have an electric range, and not the typical coil burners, but those big, solid, European-style metal burners. These give off a gentle heat at the lowest setting.  If you have a gas range, or if your saucepan is not so heavy, you might want to consider investing in some kind of heat deflector so that you don't scorch your milk.

Heat the milk gently to 200 degrees, as measured with an instant-read thermometer, or when there is a thick layer of foam on the milk. Turn off the heat and allow the milk to cool to 120 degrees, or to a point where it is warm--but not hot--to the touch. Use a small whisk, if you have one, to stir your reserved culture into the warm milk. Now pour the mix into a warm canning jar and place the jar in a small cooler. I usually place a couple of extra canning jars filled with hot water in the cooler as well. Set the cooler in a warm spot overnight.

The yogurt will form within a few hours. But since I restrict the number of carbohydrates I eat,  I let my yogurt ferment another day at room temperature. This gives  the bacteria plenty of time to convert the naturally occurring lactose in the milk into lactic acid.

Try this and see if it isn't the best yogurt you've ever tasted.  You may never buy yogurt again.

Pasture Rule Published! Great News for Organic Dairy!

by: Jill Richardson

Sat Feb 13, 2010 at 18:00:13 PM PST

When the USDA first proposed its so-called "pasture rule" at the tail end of the Bush administration, the rule was unacceptable for a number of reasons. Most of the reasons were technical ones, but the end result was that the rule would have disqualified many good dairy farmers from being organic. Yesterday, the USDA published a NEW pasture rule, and this time it's a good one as far as I can tell. The new rule requires organic dairy farmers to let cows graze on pasture for the entire growing season but not for less than 120 days. Also, the animals must receive at least 30% of their feed by grazing on pasture. Animals must have year-round access to the outdoors unless they are in ill health or the weather is so bad that they must be indoors. This goes into effect on June 17 of this year.

For more information, see below. I've included a link to an LA Times story on this as well as press releases from the Federation of Organic Dairy Farmers (FOOD Farmers) and the Cornucopia Institute.

Strange Bedfellows? What's Going on in Organic Dairy?

by: Jill Richardson

Fri Jan 29, 2010 at 12:44:17 PM PST

The pending rewrite of the organic livestock standards, with an emphasis on assuring compliance with provisions that require that ruminants, like dairy cows, be grazed, is currently under review at OMB, where the administration is being heavily lobbied by industrial farming interests to water down the rules.

It sounds to me like explosive growth in the organic market attracted these large factory farms (with up to 7200 cows), but now as organic dairy demand is flat, the glut of milk produced by these enormous milk factories is harming family dairies who allow their cows to graze on pasture. And, of course, consumers are not being served well by this either, as milk is healthier when the cows are able to graze on pasture.

Here's the strange part of it: The press release notes that the respected organic brand Strauss Dairy is partnering with Aurora (an "organic" dairy that even the Bush administration went after for violations) to do away with the pasture requirements for organic cattle that the OMB is looking at.

This is not TOO surprising to me, as in the past the government proposed organic dairy standards requiring the cows spend a certain amount of time grazing on pasture, but the standards were so flawed that they would have disqualified many legit organic dairies. Could that still be the case? (I'll add that I buy my milk from Strauss and would be most upset if they were actually lobbying for legalization of factory farms in the organic dairy market.)

In response, Albert Strauss said:

I fully support strict pasture regulations to maintain the integrity of the organic standards and ensure that factory farms are not allowed in the organic industry. My concern is that the proposed rule takes a one-size-fits-all approach which ignores regional diversity, dictating farm management without regard to geographic and climate differences in this vast country.

See more from Strauss plus the full Cornucopia Institute press release below.