apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

This is my first time posting after at least a year of reading!

A lot of small Iowa communities are starting to buy from local dairies again, like this popular dairy: http://www.hansendairy.com -- it is great to not only buy local, but buy milk that is nonhomogenized and from cows that are not injected with growth hormones too.

I live in Berlin currently - and the town is full of organic food stores and has great farmer markets especially on Saturdays. My favorite milk comes from a little "eco village" in the northeast of Berlin. After German re-unification the entire village Brodowin decided to become an eco village - they produce a variety of corn, vegetables, dairy products organically. Like Snowville Creamery's milk theirs is not homogenized. And I love the cream on top of the milk when I open a new bottle - because it means a teaspoon of yummy fresh cream for me...

Hartzler's dairy in NE Ohio makes some pretty tasty milk, too expensive for everyday use though. I will have to look for this, wonder if it's at Whole Foods in Columbus?

I live in SE Ohio and am so happy to see Snowville mentioned here. My 5-year-old daughter had milk at a friend's house and mentioned later that "it didn't taste good" because she has grown accustomed to Snowville.

Local milk is changing my cooking practices. I bought the half gallon of cream for whipped cream. I had a lot left over and was going to give it to a friend. Instead, I made butter for the first time ever. I now make butter regularly and use the buttermilk for making scones. (And I can give the scones to friends.)

Snowville also sells nice t-shirts.

You mentioned sterilization, by which I think you mean pasteurization. Do you know if the milk is vat-pasteurized?

The Iowa company Farmers' All Natural sells vat-pasteurized, non-homogenized milk. The taste is a bit different because of the pasteurization method, but the cream at the top is thick and delicious.

In the southwest, we get our milk from Straus Family Creamery, which is based in California. Their milk isn't vat-pasteurized, but it is heated at a much lower temperature than the usual supermarket "ultra-pasteurized" milk. The quality of the cream at the top seems a little bit better, and we use it into our ice creams and baking.

I live in Columbus and this milk is showing up all over town: North Market's Greener Grocer, Worthington Farmer's Market, and my own Clintonville Farmers Market. Even some local Kroger grocery stores are carrying the local dairy's line. It is tremendous to see the support of some local purveyors. And, yes, the milk is fantastic!