My family is really going through the raw dairy these days. I got the idea for this post when we – yet again – ran out of any and all raw dairy a full 24 hours before the next farm delivery. I even added a whole extra gallon to our order at last pickup and here we are out once more!
Do I run to the store and pick up a half gallon of ultrapasteurized organic milk to tide us over?
No way! Organic Valley or Horizon organic milk from the store is horrible, health-robbing stuff. I would never buy it. It is way better to go without until you are able to get more milk fresh from the farm.
We haven’t always consumed as much as we are now. It’s just that my oldest is starting puberty and drinking about a quart a day – maybe even more?
My other two kids have all of a sudden gotten into drinking it as well. I’ve always had to pretty much force them to drink their milk in the past (you know the drill – drink your milk or no bike ride after dinner or whatever).
Now they are gulping it down and asking for more.
I know this seems like a lot, but at the moment, our family of five is easily going through 4 gallons of grassfed cow milk and 2 gallons of foraging goat milk.
Per week!
Oh, I almost forgot. Add a half gallon of raw milk yogurt to that.
And 1-3 quarts of raw cream (for raw ice cream of course). Who can live without ice cream? We do a lot of milkshakes at our house.
Plus one pound of raw butter.
That’s a lot of full fat dairy for a family of five. But then again, we don’t buy any sodas, boxed breakfast cereal, and other processed foods so even though the fresh dairy is expensive, it fits within the budget.
Just my opinion, but I would go from two cars to one or move to a smaller house if necessary to afford our raw dairy. You can’t put a price on health. It is more important than any possession.
“Health is the first wealth” – Ralph Waldo Emerson
In light of how much saturated fat my family is consuming, some of you might be thinking that we surely must be a family of large people.
As it turns out, none of us has a weight problem. It’s really true – eat your whole, unprocessed fats and don’t skimp! It really does help keep you trim!
How much raw dairy does your family consume? I want to know and I’m sure others would too!
Sarah, TheHealthyHomeEconomist.com
I went into full blown menopause in 2001 after I had to have a hysterectomy . I then started having allergies, became lactose intolerant ( cannot eat any dairy ! ) & for some reason my fingernails will not grow long like they use to but are brittle. SO NO DAIRY FOR YEARS ! About 4 months ago I started buying fresh cow’s milk,1 gallon a week. Now between me & my Husband ( mostly me ) we are up to drinking 3 gallons a week but could do 4 gallons cause I run out before time to buy more. I am thrilled that I can drink milk again without all the pain & bloating in my stomach ! I drink a glass with every meal & even in between. BUT now I have been told that to much milk ( more then 3 glasses a day ) is not good for me ! Now I don’t know what to do. I don’t want to give up drinking fresh milk.Is it true that that much milk is bad for me ?
Could you upload a recipe for milkshakes?
We have Nubian goats and we sell our milk for $12/gallon in north Alabama. We have a family of four with two girls and we go through about 4 gallons a week. I want to find a suppler of raw cream since our milk doesn’t seperate, so we can make butter and ice cream.
Caroline, we are just getting into milking goats. Why does your milk not have cream? Deb
Here is the website to help you find raw milk.
http://www.realmilk.com/real-milk-finder/indiana/#in
Where do you get your raw milk and butter? i can not find a source in Fort Wayne, my doctor wants me to drink raw milk and use raw butter
We go through easily 3 – 4 gallons a week. My son is 13, and two adults but mostly I try to reserve it for my son. I can’t quite afford to do much more with it but its a nice staple now!
Thanks for writing this Sarah. You brought up two things I’d been wondering about: how much to drink, and full fat raw not contributing to weight gain. It’s good to know that I’m not over doing it ( I just started drinking raw this Tuesday and I seriously can’t stop…tastes phenomenal, but I wonder if it’s my body telling me I need the nutrients). In terms of weight management…I’m wondering why paleo followers keep saying that dairy is no good when trying to lose? I don’t do paleo myself so it’s not a raw milk deal breaker for me, just curious as to what that thought is based on.
I’m currently only getting 2 gallons of milk per week from my herd share for my family of four. Although I hope to double that as soon as possible. I would ideally like to make a gallon of kefir every week. I have no idea yet how much yogurt I’d like to be making (or ought to be making) but I hope to be able to offer it freely without restriction to everyone everyday. And I really like to just drink milk. And so do my kids. So when I consider also wanting cream to make butter and cream to use in other ways I begin to think there is no telling how much I might want to go through every week. lol