Proud Dairy Farmer in St. Louis- part 2

These are the questions attendees of Show Me the Blog asked following my presentation. 

(See Proud Dairy Farmer in St. Louis- part 1)  

  

What about drinking raw milk? The dairy industry recommends that no one consume unpasteurized milk. Selling raw milk is illegal in Minnesota. (Pasteurization is a simple, effective method to kill potentially harmful bacteria. It does not affect the nutritional value of milk.)

Do you milk the cows 7 days a week? Yes, two times each day.
So if you're here, who's milking the cows? My kids and husband.  Usually my husband and son milk in the morning, and my husband and I milk at night. When one of us needs to be gone, someone else steps in.

Because of the demands of farming, have you ever gotten a family vacation? Yes. Since we farm with my in-laws, we are able to take 3-4 days off each year. As they get older, we seek out others to help.

(L-R) Becky, Alex, Sami, Jan

Lastly, a conference-goer thanked me for telling my farming story. She stated that so often farmers get a "bad rap" and she expressed a big thank you for what we do! A thank you to her for her kind words! Also I'd like to thank Show Me the Blog for allowing me to share my story.

Besides my presentation, Minnesotan Becky Bode, from Bode Dairy spoke about what happens on her farm to care for their cows and the environment. I encourage you to check out her blog to see what happens on her dairy farm.

Samantha Carter, of Midwest Dairy also joined our presentation. Besides introducing Becky and I, she explained that Midwest Dairy represents the 9,500 dairy farm families in the 10 Midwestern states and works on behalf of dairy farmers to increase dairy sales, foster innovation and inspire consumer confidence in dairy products and practices.

Finally Alex Economy, a Registered Dietician, representing  Hy-Vee Food Stores demonstrated how to make Mozzarella Pepper Salsa. Served on an endive leaf, or a cracker, it was a huge hit!