Do any of you have a milkman?

[Jennifer in MI]

We got a flyer on our door from Oberweis Dairy. I looked them up online and I'm intrigued. They deliver milk and other milk products/eggs,etc every week. Their milk comes in glass containers. They are not certified organic, but they do not have any synthetic hormones.

 

Has anyone used this company in particular? What did you think?

 

Thanks!!

[FaithManor]

Does my DH count? We board our cow at a local organic farm. So, quite often, Dh is the one to fetch our milk. Our boarding fees include milking. This is nice, we just have to transport it.

 

If the cows were on "organic" but not certified pasture, and fed hay grown in the same manner, I'd be thrilled. Same with the chickens.

 

We have many farmers in our area that are organic but don't certify. Certification is VERY expensive and the paperwork is ridiculous. So, it can be cost prohibitive for all but the biggest operations and even then, some huge farms still don't certify but you are welcome to visit the farm, ask questions, talk to employees, and observe the environment. I've never known one to lie but I supposed that's always a possibility.

 

Sounds like a neat opportunity!

Faith

[4kiddies]

I do, I do! I don't use that company however, but I do have a milkman. It is great. Once a week he leaves milk on my front porch in glass bottles. I leave out my empties and off he goes. He also delivers orange juice, ice tea, organic snacks, all nautural beef, cheese....I think that's it. It can be pricy but I love it.

[SonshineLearner]

I don't, but I use to get raw milk. Supposedly the pasteurization of the milk isn't the worse for you, but rather the homogenization. Could be you'd be get better quality milk :) Anyway, I love the glass jars. Much nicer and fresher than plastic.

 

:)

[Jennifer in MI]

Does my DH count? We board our cow at a local organic farm. So, quite often, Dh is the one to fetch our milk. Our boarding fees include milking. This is nice, we just have to transport it.

 

If the cows were on "organic" but not certified pasture, and fed hay grown in the same manner, I'd be thrilled. Same with the chickens.

 

We have many farmers in our area that are organic but don't certify. Certification is VERY expensive and the paperwork is ridiculous. So, it can be cost prohibitive for all but the biggest operations and even then, some huge farms still don't certify but you are welcome to visit the farm, ask questions, talk to employees, and observe the environment. I've never known one to lie but I supposed that's always a possibility.

 

Sounds like a neat opportunity!

Faith

 

That is SO cool!!! So you own the cow, board it, and get free milk? Nice! Is this going to be a cow for meat? Or just milk?

 

Yes. This is what was explained to me. The cows are given organic feed, but they just haven't certified. He told me that they have the paperwork on all the tests done on their milk and animals and it exceeds organic standards.

 

My parents live near the Amish in Shipshewana. They get all their meat and eggs from them. I swear I've never had such good meat! It's not certified, but certainly it's organic.

 

Okay. I'm even more excited about this now!!!

 

I do, I do! I don't use that company however, but I do have a milkman. It is great. Once a week he leaves milk on my front porch in glass bottles. I leave out my empties and off he goes. He also delivers orange juice, ice tea, organic snacks, all nautural beef, cheese....I think that's it. It can be pricy but I love it.

 

Very cool! Sounds like this company, even if it's not the same. They also have coffee, beef and a few other things.

 

My boys are most excited about the dry ice he'll leave the milk in if it's warm out!!

[Jennifer in MI]

I don't, but I use to get raw milk. Supposedly the pasteurization of the milk isn't the worse for you, but rather the homogenization. Could be you'd be get better quality milk :) Anyway, I love the glass jars. Much nicer and fresher than plastic.

 

:)

 

I've read that about homogenization. And, I love the idea of glass bottles.

 

So, you don't get raw milk now? We've considered it.

[FaithManor]

We actually pay boarding fees for one cow but friend/family also pays for another cow. So, therefore, between the two of us, we are able to keep a cow freshened. Maybel and Betsie are for milk only and will be given a pastured retirement when they are old. The farmer was able to procure heifers for us from a farmer converting from dairy to beef. They were a very reasonable price.

 

The farmer tests his animals and manure piles for e-coli, listeria, etc. We get a discount Vet rate because we have them checked along with the rest of the herd. They are holstein/Guernsey crosses. This is the only way that it is legal to have raw milk in Michigan. Michigan requires Ultra-pasteurization and most milk is also homogenized. Between the two processes (ultra-p virtually sterilizes the milk and destroys the vitamin D), the milk loses a huge amount of nutritional content and so what's advertised on the label is actually synthetic forms that are added back at the bottling company. The vitamin d is D-2 (synthetic) and much harder to digest and make use of.

 

Our kids have done very well on this milk. We've seen many benefits. DS11 was lactose intolerant but when we put him on this milk, he was fine. Since the digestive enzymes are not destroyed, he is able to digest the lactose.

 

I make yogurt with it, after skimming the cream off (not a lot of cream because too much Holstein in her). I don't get enough cream to be worth trying to make butter. The reason for this is because the gals produce a HUGE amount of milk and I don't have refrigeration and counter space to handle making up that much milk into cheese. Someday, I may get some of the necessary kitchenware needed for handling this much milk and I could move my portable island back into the kitchen for extra counter-top (I keep it in the dining room). But right now, I just don't have the time to devote to cheese making. So, I only want three-four gallons per week. Same for the other family.

 

Since Betsie and Mayble produce more milk than can be used, we actually technically sell the excess milk back to the farmer and he puts it with the milk from his other cows and sells it to the bottling company. But, in reality, he takes it off the board bill. This means that this generous man and his employees, take care of our cows, feed them organic hay in the winter with a small amount of organic grain, milk them for us and refrigerate the milk in a dedicated refrigerator (used that the other family had in the garage), and keep track of the paperwork to keep it legal....all for the net cost to us of $15.00 per week! He is a wonderful Christian man and he is one of our favorite people.

 

He would teach our children to milk Maybel if he could spare the time, but he as 400 head of cattle; its too much liability for him to have youngsters around the milking parlor because he sells to commercial operations and so has all of these health regulations he has to follow. Plus, it just isn't safe for three smallish boys to be hanging with 400 head of cattle. But, once DS13 is about 16 or 17, he'll pay him to hoe in the fields and then show him how to milk. His liability insurance would cover him once he's "technically" an employee. Of course DS has NOOOOOOOOO desire to milk a cow. Sigh....I think it would be a neat experience for him. But, he's my budding English/ History professor, city dwelling, man. DS's 11 and nearly 10, can not wait until they are old enough!

 

Though my folks are getting their wild 10 acres ready for some hobby farming, (they'll be retiring soon), I doubt that we will move Maybel or Betsie. We'd have sooooo much investment in fencing, stable, feed and water troughs, and milking supplies, that it wouldn't be feasible. Plus, mom and dad are not putting in hay so we'd still be buying hay and hauling it. Its just sooooo much easier to let our dear farmer deal with it!

 

The "girls" are freshed with "A.I" and I have never taken the time to visit the farm when the vet is there. It would be interesting I'm sure. Again, this fee is very small because they are included in the discount rate given to the farmer. I've never checked into the source of the uhmmmm "Stuff!" I've just left that to the farmer's judgment.

 

We have also made it a policy to gift the girls offspring to the farmer so that he makes a little profit from the headache it must be to keep track of all this documentation so the state can't come after him or us for violating the law. I do think we will buy back a couple of heifers when the girls are ready to retire.

 

I've also never been out there when the girls have given birth. I'd like to and he does have a birthing barn that he brings his pregnant cows into when it is their time so that nothing happens to the calves outdoors. He has some issues with coyotes in the area and a small pack of wild dogs. So this can be an issue. It might be fun to be on hand for the birth, but then again, I'd probably be under-foot and he's got his health standards to maintain. I don't go looking for ways to complicate his life. I do occasionally go hang out with his wife. She puts in a 1/2 acre vegetable and fruit garden every year. Its all grown organically and she root cellars, dehydrates, freezes, and cans it all. I'd almost bet that except for the occasional bag of organic salad greens, she doesn't have to buy any produce from harvest to harvest.

 

Hope this wasn't too much information for you. I get excited about our little boarding operation.

 

Faith

[Granny_Weatherwax]

We did when we lived in CO - Royal Farm Dairy.

 

Our current town in IL doesn't have this opportunity, the community is too small. I wish we could find a way to have home delivery, though, because I love the quality of the milk.

[mom2denj]

WOW!! Th is so cool! I didn't know that "the milkman" still existed. We had a milkman growing up. I would SO have one if it was offered in my neck of the woods!

[Annie G]

Oberweis milk is very yummy! It's also quite pricey. When we lived in central Illinois, we had home delivery of milk in glass bottles. Not Oberweis but just as good. It was a luxury, but we had three heavy milk drinking kids and I was a Southern girl new to the snow-laden midwest. Worth it at the time.

 

We could also get chocolate milk, eggs, ice cream, and a few other products. We had an insulated box on our porch and would put our order form (and empty milk bottles) inside. So no hard sell or anything.

[Kate in Arabia]

When we were living in the Chicago suburbs we had Oberweis delivered; it was great, we just had trouble sometimes making sure we were home to get the milk, ot remembering to call and cancel if we were going to be out of town.

 

Growing up in Kentucky we had a milkman, the milk was delivered in plastic bags! We had this plastic pitcher thing than was given with it to use...

[Jennifer in MI]

We actually pay boarding fees for one cow but friend/family also pays for another cow. So, therefore, between the two of us, we are able to keep a cow freshened. Maybel and Betsie are for milk only and will be given a pastured retirement when they are old. The farmer was able to procure heifers for us from a farmer converting from dairy to beef. They were a very reasonable price.

 

The farmer tests his animals and manure piles for e-coli, listeria, etc. We get a discount Vet rate because we have them checked along with the rest of the herd. They are holstein/Guernsey crosses. This is the only way that it is legal to have raw milk in Michigan. Michigan requires Ultra-pasteurization and most milk is also homogenized. Between the two processes (ultra-p virtually sterilizes the milk and destroys the vitamin D), the milk loses a huge amount of nutritional content and so what's advertised on the label is actually synthetic forms that are added back at the bottling company. The vitamin d is D-2 (synthetic) and much harder to digest and make use of.

 

Our kids have done very well on this milk. We've seen many benefits. DS11 was lactose intolerant but when we put him on this milk, he was fine. Since the digestive enzymes are not destroyed, he is able to digest the lactose.

 

I make yogurt with it, after skimming the cream off (not a lot of cream because too much Holstein in her). I don't get enough cream to be worth trying to make butter. The reason for this is because the gals produce a HUGE amount of milk and I don't have refrigeration and counter space to handle making up that much milk into cheese. Someday, I may get some of the necessary kitchenware needed for handling this much milk and I could move my portable island back into the kitchen for extra counter-top (I keep it in the dining room). But right now, I just don't have the time to devote to cheese making. So, I only want three-four gallons per week. Same for the other family.

 

Since Betsie and Mayble produce more milk than can be used, we actually technically sell the excess milk back to the farmer and he puts it with the milk from his other cows and sells it to the bottling company. But, in reality, he takes it off the board bill. This means that this generous man and his employees, take care of our cows, feed them organic hay in the winter with a small amount of organic grain, milk them for us and refrigerate the milk in a dedicated refrigerator (used that the other family had in the garage), and keep track of the paperwork to keep it legal....all for the net cost to us of $15.00 per week! He is a wonderful Christian man and he is one of our favorite people.

 

He would teach our children to milk Maybel if he could spare the time, but he as 400 head of cattle; its too much liability for him to have youngsters around the milking parlor because he sells to commercial operations and so has all of these health regulations he has to follow. Plus, it just isn't safe for three smallish boys to be hanging with 400 head of cattle. But, once DS13 is about 16 or 17, he'll pay him to hoe in the fields and then show him how to milk. His liability insurance would cover him once he's "technically" an employee. Of course DS has NOOOOOOOOO desire to milk a cow. Sigh....I think it would be a neat experience for him. But, he's my budding English/ History professor, city dwelling, man. DS's 11 and nearly 10, can not wait until they are old enough!

 

Though my folks are getting their wild 10 acres ready for some hobby farming, (they'll be retiring soon), I doubt that we will move Maybel or Betsie. We'd have sooooo much investment in fencing, stable, feed and water troughs, and milking supplies, that it wouldn't be feasible. Plus, mom and dad are not putting in hay so we'd still be buying hay and hauling it. Its just sooooo much easier to let our dear farmer deal with it!

 

The "girls" are freshed with "A.I" and I have never taken the time to visit the farm when the vet is there. It would be interesting I'm sure. Again, this fee is very small because they are included in the discount rate given to the farmer. I've never checked into the source of the uhmmmm "Stuff!" I've just left that to the farmer's judgment.

 

We have also made it a policy to gift the girls offspring to the farmer so that he makes a little profit from the headache it must be to keep track of all this documentation so the state can't come after him or us for violating the law. I do think we will buy back a couple of heifers when the girls are ready to retire.

 

I've also never been out there when the girls have given birth. I'd like to and he does have a birthing barn that he brings his pregnant cows into when it is their time so that nothing happens to the calves outdoors. He has some issues with coyotes in the area and a small pack of wild dogs. So this can be an issue. It might be fun to be on hand for the birth, but then again, I'd probably be under-foot and he's got his health standards to maintain. I don't go looking for ways to complicate his life. I do occasionally go hang out with his wife. She puts in a 1/2 acre vegetable and fruit garden every year. Its all grown organically and she root cellars, dehydrates, freezes, and cans it all. I'd almost bet that except for the occasional bag of organic salad greens, she doesn't have to buy any produce from harvest to harvest.

 

Hope this wasn't too much information for you. I get excited about our little boarding operation.

 

Faith

 

Thank you SO much for this information! I always like getting a glimpse into your life. It sounds so romantic. What a great find you have in that farmer. And, the opportunity for your kids is incredible!! I'd love to have his wife show me her gardening tips.

 

We did when we lived in CO - Royal Farm Dairy.

 

Our current town in IL doesn't have this opportunity, the community is too small. I wish we could find a way to have home delivery, though, because I love the quality of the milk.

 

Good to know that the quality of the milk is higher. Thanks!!

 

WOW!! Th is so cool! I didn't know that "the milkman" still existed. We had a milkman growing up. I would SO have one if it was offered in my neck of the woods!

 

I didn't know about it either! I don't usually respond when one of those flyers is put on my front door (landscaping services, etc). But this one was too good not to look up!

 

Oberweis milk is very yummy! It's also quite pricey. When we lived in central Illinois, we had home delivery of milk in glass bottles. Not Oberweis but just as good. It was a luxury, but we had three heavy milk drinking kids and I was a Southern girl new to the snow-laden midwest. Worth it at the time.

 

We could also get chocolate milk, eggs, ice cream, and a few other products. We had an insulated box on our porch and would put our order form (and empty milk bottles) inside. So no hard sell or anything.

 

Awesome!! Their milk is only a little more expensive than what I pay for organic milk in the grocery store. Oberweis didn't have the hard sell either. I was quite impressed by the salesman I talked to on the phone.

 

When we were living in the Chicago suburbs we had Oberweis delivered; it was great, we just had trouble sometimes making sure we were home to get the milk, ot remembering to call and cancel if we were going to be out of town.

 

Growing up in Kentucky we had a milkman, the milk was delivered in plastic bags! We had this plastic pitcher thing than was given with it to use...

 

Plastic bags!? Good to hear from someone who actually used Oberweis. So as long as I remember to call and inform them of our vacations, we should be good heh? Thanks!!

[Jean in Newcastle]

We have a milkman. We have an insulated box on our porch that the company provided. Every week we get eggs and soy milk. In fact, I need to go out and bring in my delivery now! You can also order regular cow's milk of course, o.j., cheese and cookie dough from them.

[JeneralMom]

We had a milkman when we were young (in Montreal).

 

Now, I am the milkman ;) Actually, I started a farm fresh eggs and raw milk co-op, so I go to the farms/dairy and get the eggs and milk and either deliver them to people or have them pick them up.

[Jennifer in MI]

We have a milkman. We have an insulated box on our porch that the company provided. Every week we get eggs and soy milk. In fact, I need to go out and bring in my delivery now! You can also order regular cow's milk of course, o.j., cheese and cookie dough from them.

 

Cool! I thought it was such a rare thing, but it seems there are a few here who have them! Love it!

 

We had a milkman when we were young (in Montreal).

 

Now, I am the milkman ;) Actually, I started a farm fresh eggs and raw milk co-op, so I go to the farms/dairy and get the eggs and milk and either deliver them to people or have them pick them up.

 

Would you deliver to Michigan? :loll: Sounds like a neat business. You must meet really neat people doing this.

[MotherMayI]

We had Oberweis delivered when we were living in IL. We loved it. The chocolate milk is so thick and delicious- I had to have it every day when I was pregnant with ds1! We are going back to the midwest for vacation this summer and my dh and I just were talking about going to Oberweis for some ice cream and chocolate milk:D.

[Suzanne in ABQ]

We did when we lived in Colorado. I loved that milk! It was so cold, and fresh, and it tasted SO good coming out of the glass container. And, since we lived far from any store, it was wonderful to at least never run out of milk!

 

Wish I could have it now, but there isn't a milk service where we live.

[nukeswife]

We used Oberweis when we lived in WI and loved it. They didn't sell quite as much stuff then, but we were sad when we moved to SE VA and they didn't have a delivery service there. Recently they started serving our area and as soon as we found out we signed up again. I love not having to worry about milk. Their sour cream is great, has a nice twang to it, unlike a lot of the stuff I'd been buying. We also love their brownies and banana bread. We've even tried the ice cream tubes which are ok, but kind of pricey. I stick to Schwan's for Ice Cream delivery but my kids were so excited when our milkman was back. They even left a card out for the driver the day our first delivery was set to arrive. I have found that it actually cost me a bit less than what I was paying for Horizons milk at our local grocery.