Talk to me about cow's milk

[anomaly13]

It been at least 4 years since I bought cow's milk and back then it was a local, hormone/antibiotic (rBGH?) free, non-organic milk that I am unsure of how it was processed, was not raw. Since then we have moved. Anyway I want to make my own yougurt and kefir from Cow's milk but am confused. If it is pasturized/homoginized does it even matter if it's organic or not at that point? Also can you even buy non pasturized or non homoginized milk in the grocery store? Lastly would local be better even if it's not organic, has no antibiotics/hormones, and has been pasturized/homogenized? Obviously raw would be the best option but I am having a had time getting dh on board and was thinking of trying to get the best possible free milk i can on WIC for now.



(If you try you would be suprised what you can get on WIC. We have the card here so it is the computer, not the cashier, that decieds if what you are trying to get will pass. I get tillamok chesse with no problem and used to get organic beans too but the store stoped carrying them. So am thinking of trying out all the milk I would want to see if any pass)

[dogretro]

Originally Posted by anomaly13

If it is pasturized/homoginized does it even matter if it's organic or not at that point?

Pas/Homo is different that organic. Organic means the cows were on a certified organic farm and fed organic food. P/H is processing that takes place AFTER the milking, so it would still be organic. Pasturization kills bacteria by super heating the milk and homoginization mixes the milkfat into the milk. You can get non-organic milk that is not P or H, organic milk that is not P or H, or the other way around There is a wide variety. Where I live, all of the raw milk is non-H. I, personally, do not care for non-H milk, pasturized or not. I do not think it tastes as good as H milk.

Also can you even buy non pasturized or non homoginized milk in the grocery store?

Availability of raw milk depends on your state's laws. It is illegal to sell raw milk in some states. Generally, you have to go to natural food stores or farmer's markets to find raw or non-H milk.

Lastly would local be better even if it's not organic, has no antibiotics/hormones, and has been pasturized/homogenized? Obviously raw would be the best option but I am having a had time getting dh on board and was thinking of trying to get the best possible free milk i can on WIC for now.

Again, I go largely by taste. My favourite milk is local, non-organic. I have to drive far to get it, so I usually end up buying national organic from the regular grocery store.

[mamadelbosque]

We get raw milk from a local farmer thats not homogonized. Its very yummy stuff though its hard to justify it when I could get milk for free from WIC or past/homo organic with foodstamps... but we do. Mind you its fairly reasonable (just a little over $5 a gallon), but we have to have a herd share (which dictates exactly how much milk I get every week irregardless of how much you want/use), as selling raw milk is illegal here (OH). If I couldn't get raw milk, I'd look for milk that was organic or grassfed, with homogenization being a secondary consideration (TBH the only non-homogonized milk I've ever had (excluding the raw milk I get now), was absolutely awful. Just tasted gross...)