Full Quiver

One of the things we need to buy until we can produce our own, is good quality milk. For the past several years we’ve been enjoying the benefits of raw milk. Raw milk is unpasteurized, typically comes from grass-fed cows and is usually organic. Unfortunately, the government regulates the sale of milk and buying raw milk is a bit tricky. You can’t just go out to your local grocery store and buy it. If you’re lucky you can find it in a good quality health food store. It’s usually labeled “not for human consumption” which can put most people off from buying it. If you’re really lucky you know someone who owns a cow and can do a deal with them. We had been part of a local co-op in Florida which organized a weekly delivery from a raw milk dairy. It was satisfying having a direct connection with the farmer.

If you are unfamiliar to the benefits of raw milk (and the controversy surrounding it) and would like to learn more, there is a great website that can explain it much better than I can. They even provide contacts if you are searching for a local source.

That’s how I found Full Quiver Farms. The farm is about 30 miles from us, but well worth the drive every couple of weeks. Milk freezes well, so I usually buy two gallons and freeze one. Full Quiver Farms is owned by a Mennonite family. According to their website, they were struggling with their small commercial dairy farm and started making cheese. Now they offer a full range of dairy products, along with grass-fed beef, whey-fed pork and free-range chicken. They also sell a few grocery items in their little store.

I’ve been over there twice so far. The milk is wonderful and has a thick cream line. Yum. We’ve also tried their sausages, eggs, and chicken and they are great as well. We are hoping they can supply what we need until we can produce our own.