Dairy - Health dairy choices - organic, grass-fed, fresh, unpasteurized
Health-beneficial dairy choices
"Got Good Milk?"
". . . a land that floweth with MILK and honey"
Main Considerations when buying milk and milk products
Comments
(1) Raw or Processed?
Raw (Unprocessed), pasteurized (low-heat, HTST, Ultrapasteurized),
homogenized, high or low fat?
Choices of pasteurized
milk
(2) Organic or not?
Animals' food should be non-GMO and uncontaminated
by pesticides or herbicides;
GM Foods -How to avoid Genetically Modified Foods
(3) From grass (or hay) -fed or
grain-fed animals?
Choose dairy products from cows/goats/ sheep or buffalo whose food
is mainly grass or hay, not grain
(4) From A1 or A2 beta-casein milk-producing animals?
Some people have serious inflammatory problems consuming milk
from cows that produce A1 beta-casein in their milk (mainly Holstein-Fresians
cows, 90% of U.S. milk) and should drink A2-betacasein milk from most
Jersey/Guernsey cows, goats or buffalo.
Milk - A1 vs. A2 beta-casein
The Best Choice is Whole, RAW Milk (or its products)
from animals eating ORGANICALLY-grown GRASS, not given synthetic growth hormones
or regular antibiotic treatments to increase milk production
Choose raw milk over pasturized if you can find it
Is raw milk safe?
Raw milk kills
pathogens
Locate a raw milk source near you at
Campaign for Real Milk .
Alternatively, use a low-heat processed pasteurized milk
source (ideally organic, grass-fed)
Pasteurization
methods
Raw cheeses are sold in some U.S. stores -
but you have to look for them (many are imported E.g. French Comte cheese is currently
sold at Costco's (11/2018)
Choose Dairy Products from Grass-fed cows
Grass fed cows produce milk that is
nutritionally superior to grain-fed cows:
- Contains an impressive amino acid and immuno-supportive
nutrient profile;
- Rich in healthy fats lipolic acid and CLA
(conjugated linoleic acid). Grassfed dairy products contain nearly 6 times more
CLA than non-grassfed.
What does "Grass-fed" mean?
Only that the cows have had SOME
grass or hay and not necessarily that they have been outside or
grazing. Milk companies usually disclose on their website how many
days / year their milk-producing cows were grazing on pasture.
Labeling is overseen by the FDA and currently (2022) is not very
definitve regarding terms used. The American Grassfed Association
(AGA) came up with a more informative, labeling standard for sellers
of grassfed milk in December 2017, but still in voluntary use, since
the FDA are slow to fix the labeling abuse.
Brands of
ORGANIC
Milk claiming to be pasture-raised or grassfed:
ORGANIC
VALLEY ®
Organic "GRASSMILK". 100% GRASS-FED (which can
include organic pasture or hay, and a small amount of nutritional
molasses, but NO GRAIN) . From
their website organicvalley.coop:
" Pasture-raised
dairy is a philosophy of farming
practiced on all Organic Valley dairy farms, based on the core
principle that cows should spend as much time outside as
possible. This means farmers give their cows access to pasture every
day they can during their grazing season, which is region- and
weather-dependent but ranges from 120
days (the National Organic Program
minimum) to 200 days a year .
The only exceptions are during bad weather, excessive heat, or if a
cow is breeding or not feeling well."
On the down-side, this milk is ultra-pasteurized and relatively
expensive.
ORGANIC
VALLEY® Organic "Pasture-Raised".
Cows have
received an average 55% fresh organic pasture grasses - eaten outdoors, plus
organic dried forages and a small amount of grains. Cows spend an average
191 days / year (minimum 120 days) on pasture.
HORIZON® Organic " Grassfed".
Graze on organic pasture for at least 150 days / year.
The rest of the year they eat organic dried forages, grain and feed.
Horizon® Organic.
Aurora® Organic. At least
30% of cow feed is from organic pasture during grazing
Natural by Nature® Organic
GRASS-BASED. 7 of their farms are 100% grassfed, but
the others feed some grain. Their suppliers are required to make
pasture the main source of the cows'diet.
Choose dairy products from rBGH-free cows
rBGH
(Recombinant Bovine Growth Hormone) is injected into
dairy cows to artificially force a >10% increase in milk production.
rBGH, also called rBST (Recombinant SOMATO tropin),
sold as Posilac® (Monsanto sold this product to the pharmaceutical giant Eli
Lilly in 2008) is a synthetic, genetically modifed
version of natural BGH / BST
- rBGH causes health
problems/pain in cows . The E.U. Scientific Committee on
Animal Health and Animal Welfare stated that rBST used in dairy cows produces reproductive
disorders and substantially increases foot problems, mastitis and injection site
reactions, painful and debilitating to the cows.
- rBGH is significantly
correlated with increased cancer risk. rBGH
milk contains higher levels of PUS, bacteria, and antibiotics
The sale of Posilac® (rBGH) is illegal in virtually every
developed country, except the U.S.!
Other "moo-velous" milk-related information
Cultured / Fermented milk products.
Skimmed or partially skimmed milk is soured by introducing a culture of lactic
acid-producing bacteria and/or yeast. Dating back to around 10,000 B.C., this process
extends the short "shelf-life" of milk, adds nutrients, especially probiotics, and
enhances digestibility. In addition to cow and goat milk, non-dairy milks can also
be cultured, including coconut, soy, and almond milk.
- Yogurt.
Primarily cultured from cow's milk, and by definition must contain
Lactobacillus bulgaricus and Streptococcus thermophilus
- Kefir.
Described as "drinkable yogurt", it is made by introducing so-called
kefir grains (small, spongy, symbiotic colonies of ~20% beneficial yeast and ~80%
bacteria) into milk. Kefir has a high probiotic
content (E.g. 10-20 billion CFU / 8 oz in Lifeway brand, but has high sugar
content);
How to obtain
probiotics
-
Cheese. To
have probiotic benefits, cheese must be AGED or made from RAW (unpasteurized) milk. A variety of over 2,000 hard and soft
cheese are made using different levels and steps in the fermentation process, often
named by their original place of production. Best choice is naturally
fermented cheese (E.g. made by simply straining the moisture from sour cream or yogurt).
Raw milk cheese is still made in France, England, Switzerland and Greece from
whole milk from pasture-fed cows. Look for words "milk" or "fresh milk" rather
than "pasteurized milk" on the label.
Some probiotic-rich cheeses include: Cheddar,
provolone, Edam, feta, Gouda, cream cheese,
blue, Gruyere, Wensleydale, and goat.
- Sour Cream / Craime
fraiche. Cream soured with a bacterial culture.
Compared to sour cream, craime fraîche is less tangy and has a higher fat content
(30% compared to 20% - curdles less in simmering soups or sauces) and being naturally
thick, it does not contain added thickeners.
- Buttermilk /
clabbered milk. Traditional buttermilk is the liquid
left after churning butter or is the result of leaving fresh, unrefrigerated milk
to be fermented naturally by its inherent wild-bacteria (called clabbered milk).
Today buttermilk is typically cultured milk. Buttermilk tastes tart and is thicker
than plain milk. Its acidity is utilized to make soda bread and marinate/tenderize
meat.
Butter. Churned from
cream; raw is preferred, otherwise choose organic butter from cows fed fast-growing
grass. E.g. from Ireland (Kerrygold®), Denmark (Lurpak®) or New Zealand (Anchor®):
Butter
Cream. Raw is preferred,
otherwise pasteurized (e.g. Butterworks®). Add cream liberally to soups, drinks,
desserts to enhance body's utilization of water-soluble vitamins;
Creamiest
Milk. Guernsey and Jersey cow milk is the creamiest
and these breeds produce milk without inflammatory A1 beta-casein.
Add Sulfurated protein
(E.g. cottage cheese, ricotta, yogurt)
to fresh flax seed oil. Sulfurated
protein mixed with flax oil makes the oil water-soluble and enhances utilization
of its Omega-3 f at
content.
- Choose Full or Low-fat (not no-fat)
Cottage Cheese, Ricotta Cheese or Yogurt (Plain,without added sugar,
with active cultures)
Dried Milk - "A recipe for heart disease".
Dried milk contains artery-damaging oxidized (i.e. damaged)
cholesterol. It is an ingredient in many products, such as low-fat cheese, cake
mixes, cocoa mixes, candy bars, some baked goods.
Dried milk is usually added to low fat, 1% and 2% milk to improve
flavor
Freezing Milk
does not affect its nutritional value short-term.
It does affect its consistency.
Use milk within 2 days once opened.
Once opened, bacteria
accumulate quickly in plastic bottles, so drink the entire bottle within a day or
two.
Made by gently heating butter to cause the water to boil off
and the protein milk solids to settle to the bottom. The cooked and
clarified butter fat is then strained from the milk solids.
unsalted
butter
