your questions answeredMilk From Farm to Fridge

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Amazing stepsfrom cow to you

After the milk is tested, milk goes through a three-step process: pasteurization, standardization and homogenization.

Refrigerated trucks transport milk and dairy foods to schools, grocery stores and restaurants for you and your family to enjoy!

Milk is tested for safety before it leaves the tanker. If milk tests positive for antibiotics, it is disposed of and never enters the food supply.

Dairy farmers use milking machines to milk their cows 2-3 times a day. It only takes about 5-7 minutes for a cow to be milked!

Milk is pumped through sanitized pipes and is rapidly cooled before it reaches the refrigerated bulk tank where it is stored at 45˚F or less.

Additional lab testing of finished product for freshness and consistency is done before leaving the processing facility to the grocery store.

Milk is transported in an insulated tanker from the farm to a processing facility. From farm to fridge, milk is never touched by human hands.

Pasteurized milk is cooled and stored in tanks until bottled. Bottled products are randomly pulled from production for additional testing.

The U.S. is home to 9 million dairy cows that live on 37,000 farms and produce 25 billion gallons of milk annually. When you buy dairy foods, you’re supporting hard-working dairy farm families, which helps create jobs and positively impact thousands of communities like yours. Dairy farms are the ultimate local businesses – most Americans live within 100 miles of a dairy farm.

Milk travels from the farm to the grocery store in as little as 48 hours

DAIRY IS LOCALLY DRIVEN

West Virginia is home to 7,000 dairy cows

that live on about 60 farms and produce

12.9 million gallons of milk annually

Ohio is home to 253,000 dairy cows that live

on about 2,000 farms and produce 628 million

gallons of milk annually

1st in Swiss cheese production

5th in total number of dairy companies

11th in milk production

1

5

11

38 38th in number of dairy farms

95%

of all dairy farms nationwide are family-owned

42nd in number of dairy cows

43rd in milk production

Ohio West Virginia

42

43

National rankings

IS DAIRY GOOD FOR OUR AIR, LAND & WATER?

80% OF A COW’S DIET IS INEDIBLE TO HUMANS

or it can even be recycled into renewable energy

65% LESS WATER &

63% LESS CARBON

Today a gallon of milk is produced with

than a gallon of milk in 1944

Dairy farmers work to conserve resources such as water, land and energy. They also carefully manage waste. Today, farmers have tools to measure soil, carbon, water and energy use to make decisions that help their farms use those resources efficiently.

.

By-products from food and fiber industries like citrus pulp & cottonseed are converted to milk rather than sent to landfills

56 POUNDS OF CORN OR84 POUNDS OF TOMATOES

1 cow produces 17 gallons of manure per day - that’s enough

natural fertilizer to grow

The dairy community is working to

REDUCE GHG EMISSIONS BY 25% BY 2020

Common questions

IS THERE A DIFFERENCE BETWEEN ORGANIC & REGULAR MILK?

No. In terms of quality, safety and nutrition, there’s no difference between organic and regular milk. The difference is how they are produced on the farm.

No. Hormones are naturally present in many foods of plant and animal origin, including milk. Although it is uncommon, some farmers choose to supplement their cows with rbST, an FDA-approved synthetic hormone, to help with milk production. Science shows that it is safe for cows and has no effect on humans or the hormone levels in the milk itself.

ARE THERE GMOs IN MY MILK?

No. Some cows eat feed containing genetically engineered corn and soybeans which cows digest the same way as they do non-GMO grains. Genetically engineered DNA has never been detected in milk from cows fed GMO plants.

ARE THERE HORMONES ADDED TO MY MILK?

No. A2 milk offers the same nutrition and health benefits as regular milk. Any specific claims are not currently supported by science.

IS THERE A BENEFIT TO DRINKING A2 MILK OVER REGULAR MILK?

No. All milk – both regular and organic – is tested for antibiotics. Cows sometimes get sick and require medicine, but their milk does not go into the milk supply. If milk tests positive for antibiotics, it is disposed of and never enters the food stream. Less than 0.02% of all milk tested last year ever had an issue.

ARE THERE ANTIBIOTICS IN MILK?

Some organic farming practices include:

-Cows must have access to organic pasture during the grazing season

-Cows must eat certified organic feed

-Antibiotics are prohibited and cows must be sold to non-organic markets if treament is required

about milk

Most asked questions

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN DAIRY COWS GET SICK?

Cows do occasionally get sick and sometimes require medicine – just like we do. Large-animal veterinarians prescribe antibiotics only when needed. These cows are housed separately so they can be closely monitored and wear leg bands to make sure they are not milked with the rest of the herd.

about cow care

WHY AREN’T ALL DAIRY COWS OUT ON PASTURE?

Dairy cows eat about 100 pounds of feed and drink 30-50 gallons of water (about a bathtub full) each day. Their feed is specially formulated by a dairy nutritionist and is typically a combination of hay, grain, corn silage (the entire corn stalk chopped) and proteins (such as soybean meal), plus vitamins and minerals.

The well-being, protection and comfort of cows are top priority on all farms. Access to pasture is determined by geography, land availability and weather conditions. Many of today’s dairy farms use “free-stall housing,” a type of climate-controlled barn, where cows move about as they choose, equipped with fans, misters, curtains and soft bedding like sand, mattresses or waterbeds to keep them comfortable.

WHAT DO DAIRY COWS EAT?

Calves represent the future of the farm so dairy farmers work extremely hard to keep them healthy, which is why newborn calves are moved to clean individual pens like hutches or special calf barns within 24 hours of birth. Newborns have vulnerable immune systems so it is important to protect them from germs in the environment or diseases that can be passed on from adult cows.

WHY AREN’T CALVES KEPT WITH THEIR MOTHERS?

IS DAIRY GOOD FOR ME & MY FAMILY?Milk and dairy foods don’t just taste delicious, but they’re also good for your body. Drinking 8 ounces of nutritious milk can help you get one step closer to meeting the Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommended 3 servings of lowfat or fat-free milk, cheese or yogurt.

One serving of milk provides: 25%

daily value

16%daily value

15%daily value

10%daily value

50%daily value

20%daily value

15%daily value

25%daily value

20%daily value

CALCIUMHelps build and maintain strong bones and teeth

PROTEINHelps build and repair muscle tissue

VITAMIN DHelps build and maintain strong bones and teeth

VITAMIN B3 (NIACIN)Used in energy metabolism in the body

VITAMIN B12 (COBALAMIN)Helps with normal blood functions and a healthy nervous system

VITAMIN B5 (PANTOTHENIC ACID)Helps your body use carbohydrates, fats and protein for fuel

VITAMIN AHelps keep skin and eyes healthy; helps promote growth

VITAMIN B2 (RIBOFLAVIN)Helps your body use carbohydrates, fats and protein for fuel

PHOSPHORUSHelps build and maintain strong bones & teeth; supports tissue growth

The % daily value tells you how much a nutrient in a serving of food contributes to a daily diet.

2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.

Sources U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. 2016. USDA National Nutrient Database for Standard Reference, Release 28.

Nutrient Data Laboratory Home Page, http://ars.usda.gov/nutrientdata; Low-fat milk with added vitamin A and D (#01082)