Going organic for milk and eggs?

[SollysMom]

I think I know the answer to this, but how important is it to go organic for milk and eggs? I've switched for yogurt and some produce, but it seems cost-prohibitive for milk and eggs since we go through a lot.

Right now, we buy Byrne Dairy milk (which is local, I think) at Sam's Club and we go through a lot of it. It's not organic but does not contain artificial growth hormones. I've been cutting back on milk consumption - I generally only use it for smoothies (1/2 cup, not even every day because I often use juice) or occasionally with dinner or with a few cookies after dinner. DH drinks about a quart a day - a pint at breakfast and one at dinner. DS1 doesn't drink cows milk (still nurses and only drinks water otherwise). Organic is SO MUCH more expensive, and I'm wondering how important it is to switch since what I buy is local and at least hormone-free.

Same with eggs. We buy them by the 3-dozen at Sam's and they're pretty inexpensive. DH has been eating 2-3 eggs every day lately and I eat them 1-2 times a week. We've offerend DS1 eggs but he won't eat them. Organic/local are so much more expensive!

So... how important is it? Since DH doesn't seem to care, should I buy small quantities of organic for myself?

[serenbat]

but does not contain artificial growth hormones

while that is kind of good, it doesn't tell you what they are feed-mostly GRAIN, maybe some soy, etc. I would say, check out the dairy and find out

to some that is fine, I like grass feed and knowing that the food is organic, locally they sell what is listed as RAW and natural (what it means is they are feed SPRAYED grass, again, we don't want that in our diet)- to each their own

most cheap eggs come from chickens feed soy, we don't do soy, others have no problems wanting it

what they are feed, you are getting

we would sooner cut back on dairy (I get cheap ORGANIC eggs) than get non-organic, it's a trade off worth it to us

personally cheap doesn't mean much to me when in the long run it effects overall health, pay now or later

[mnnice]

To me it is important to not eat eggs from battery cages. I mostly buy eggs from a coworker. She had exactly 7 laying hens. They eat regular feed store laying mash, but they also eat food scraps, grass, ect. The eggs are huge and tasty with deeply yellow yolks. She also only charges $1.50 a dozen. I also have a box of egg replacer stuff in my cupboard to bake with if I am out of eggs.

Organic dairy is important to me because pesticides build up up as we eat higher up the food chain. If money was real tight I'd give up organic milk before I'd give up on organic butter or cheese since things higher in butter fat will have more pesticides/herbicides in them. I don't buy Horizon since I think they are organic "cheaters"

[SollysMom]

Thanks for the replies. I did switch to organic yogurt and have been limiting my consumption of milk and cheese. I've also only been eating eggs maybe once a week. I'll let DH do what he wants, and if/when my kids start drinking cows milk I'll consider switching to organic then - DH is in a job where his earning should increase a lot over a few years, so hopefully by then cost won't be as much of an issue. DS1 looooves cheese, so I should see if I have any affordable organic options for cheese. He's a bit of a cheese snob and likes the good american cheese from the deli which is around $6/lb anyway.

[berry987]

Personally, I've always felt like organic dairy was the most important if choosing what to do organic. My rationale is that with produce, you can wash it well and at least get off a lot of the pesticide residue, but with milk or eggs, there is no way to lower the hormones or pesticides that the animals ate.

We also eat a lot of milk and eggs - 2 dozen eggs and 2 gallons of milk a week. It is definitely expensive!

[aprons_and_acorns]

I know this has probably been suggested dozens of times on this board, but making your own yogurt is so easy and for us it ends up being less than half the price. We do that to defray the cost of buying organic dairy. Around here Organic Valley milk is about 7.50 per gallon, but organic yogurt is over 4.50 per quart. So once a week I buy a gallon of organic milk, turn a quart of it into yogurt and we drink the other three quarts. We get our eggs from a nearby friend and they are free-range but not completely organic.

I totally understand about being on a tight budget for groceries and having a husband who needs to eat/drink quite a bit to sustain an active life. It can seem like a never ending balancing act!

[SollysMom]

I actually have been meaning to make my own yogurt! I first switched from Wegmans all-natural (~$2/qt, not organic) to Stonyfield Farms (~$3.50/qt, organic) and now I just ordered some local organic yogurt from my online farmers market (~$4/qt). I can get unhomogenized organic milk from the same farm for $6.30/gallon or $3.70/half gallon, so I can make my own yogurt with their milk and save money over even the Wegmans brand.

[dogmom327]

I've had really good luck in the past finding inexpensive eggs on Craig's List. Usually you can find people who have chickens and while the feed isn't always certified organic, usually the chickens spend enough time running around, eating bugs and grass, etc. that they are eating a limited amount of the actual chicken feed.

[SollysMom]

Originally Posted by dogmom327

I've had really good luck in the past finding inexpensive eggs on Craig's List. Usually you can find people who have chickens and while the feed isn't always certified organic, usually the chickens spend enough time running around, eating bugs and grass, etc. that they are eating a limited amount of the actual chicken feed.

Genius! I checked and there's one about 25 minutes from me that sells them for $2/dozen and the chickens are grass fed free range. 25 minutes is still a bit of a hike considering I personally don't eat that many eggs and DH doesn't really care, but I might talk to him about it. For comparison's sake, we've been paying ~$3.75 for 3 dozen at Sam's Club. So this would be ~$0.75/dozen more, which isn't terrible IMO. Just the added inconvenience of driving to get them.

[Meksmama]

Hi Faith (sollysmom)

We get organic local raw milk for $4.50 a gallon and I make our own yogurt from it. If you want more info let me know. Pickup is in Syracuse.

If you go to the regional market in Syracuse you can get organic local free range eggs for $2.50 a dozen and they also have non homogenized milk there as well. I can't recall the price.

We get organic because you are what you eat... and I also try to know the farmer who is supplying us with our food so I know what the animals are eating.

-Melanie

[SollysMom]

Thanks for the info Melanie! I recently started ordering from cnybounty.com because I can't always make it to the regional market, but it seems the selection/prices might still be better at the regional market. I'd love info about where you get your milk, if you don't mind.

[Meksmama]

I will pm you milk info...

I have found cnybounty to be a little more pricey than the farmers market so I go to the market on Saturdays.

[lakeruby]

personally cheap doesn't mean much to me when in the long run it effects overall health, pay now or later

This is how I feel too. I second the idea of talking to the farmers who produce your local milk. If milk is called "organic" it has to be certified by the government, which means lots of expensive paperwork, and most small farmers can't afford to do it. If the milk is hormone-free, then the farmers may also let the cows free-range on grass. I think what the cows eat is the most important factor in determining how healthy their milk is for us to drink. So, just ask! Organic milk at the store is not necessarily grass-fed.

As for eggs, I would try to find a way to afford the quality eggs. Chickens also need a varied diet (i.e. a normal chicken diet) in order to produce healthy eggs. Eggs from sams are from chickens without beaks, kept in tiny cages, eating soy-based GMO feed, and NO greens or bugs like they would like. I just don't see how their eggs can be healthy if that's what they eat and they live in constant stress....

Good luck with your quest! It is really difficult to make food decisions these days, huh?

[lakeruby]

We get organic local raw milk for $4.50 a gallon and I make our own yogurt from it. If you want more info let me know. Pickup is in Syracuse.

That's awesome! Our local grass-fed raw milk is $13 a gallon! I sure do wish we could find it cheaper.

[lakeruby]

Originally Posted by SollysMom

Genius! I checked and there's one about 25 minutes from me that sells them for $2/dozen and the chickens are grass fed free range. 25 minutes is still a bit of a hike considering I personally don't eat that many eggs and DH doesn't really care, but I might talk to him about it. For comparison's sake, we've been paying ~$3.75 for 3 dozen at Sam's Club. So this would be ~$0.75/dozen more, which isn't terrible IMO. Just the added inconvenience of driving to get them.

Awesome!