Where Does Milk Come From?

Fun at the Farm!

I grew up in the country with a cow pasture on one side, a horse pasture on the other, and woods behind my family’s property.  In the spring, my mom and I hunted for morel mushrooms in the woods.  During the summer, I spent many days at an old cow pond behind my house eating fresh vegetables that I had just picked from my mom’s garden on the way to the pond.  My favorites were peas and cucumbers, which cooled me off on hot summer days.  In the late summer and early fall, we walked about a mile down the road to pick wild blackberries that grew alongside the road.  Unfortunately, ticks also liked to hang out around the blackberries; so to this day, I have an aversion to blackberries.

Aside from my experience with ticks, I was extremely fortunate to grow up seeing where food comes from first-hand.  But many children, including my child, don’t have the luxury of farm land nearby.  They believe the food we eat comes from the grocery store.  To set my child straight, we’ve visited blueberry and strawberry “u-pick” farms a few times.  We even visited a local hydroponic farm.  And just yesterday, we had the opportunity to take a tour of a local dairy farm. 

All Done Milking

Although modern farming techniques have made milking a cow more of an automated process than it used to be, the tour still reinforced the importance of feeding cows high quality, fresh grass to produce nutrient rich milk.  The farm we visited practices sustainable farming, growing 250 acres of grass to feed their cows, using recycled water and composted manure for soil to reduce fertilizer needs.  The farm prides itself on producing superior quality dairy products by farming healthy, grass-fed cows, with no added growth hormones.

I’m not sure how much my two year old actually learned from this tour (other than, boy did she see a lot of cows), but we will revisit this farm from time to time as she grows older to reinforce ideas of feeding animals natural foods to produce nutrient rich and healthy products, recycling, and sustainable farming.  That’s okay.  This just means that the farm has more to offer than my preschooler needs for now, so we’ll go back again.

Cows Moving In and Out of Milking Stations

My objective yesterday was to show her where milk comes from.  And in that regard, mission accomplished!  She stared, wide-eyed at the milking process and was fascinated to taste the milk made at the farm.  We also had the opportunity to talk about the different kinds of milk and other products made from milk.  We even made butter by shaking heavy cream (the top layer of milk collected from a cow that is rich in fat) in a jar.  Who knew it was that easy?  And we finished our stay with delicious ice cream.

If you have a farm within driving distance that uses sustainable and/or organic practices, it might be a good idea to contact them to see if you (or your child’s play group) can schedule a visit.  After all, we all need food, and it’s important to support and teach our children about good farming practices.  Plus, your children will discover where food really comes from!  And just maybe, they will remember the work that went into creating that product at the grocery store and will be a little more appreciative of the food they eat.