# Keeping Raw Milk



## bstuart29 (Jul 11, 2006)

Yesterday found a local source of raw cow milk for $3/gallon and bought some and was wondering how long before it's starts to sournis it shorter then store milk or about the same? Evenually may try making some cheese or icecream.


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## whodunit (Mar 29, 2004)

We've kept ours SEALED for up to 10 days before it starts to turn. It has much to do with the hygiene practices of the milker such as cleaning the teats before milking, using clean utensils, and a clean jar. Even when it turns (usually the cream on top starts to go first) we have used it to make rice pudding or something cooked. I have heard of people using a small amount of salt to help it keep longer but I don't know about the ratios.


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## whodunit (Mar 29, 2004)

That seems like a good price, BTW.


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## bstuart29 (Jul 11, 2006)

Ok thank you


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## okiemomof3 (Jan 11, 2010)

we do only raw milk and i get a gallon to last almost two weeks before turning.....sometimes its 10 days, somtimes its 13 days...never know. One thing i have noticed, it turns sour much slower and milder....not sure how to explain it. somtimes you gotta give a really good sniff to see if it turned....where as store bought milk there is never any question  i don't throw it out though, it makes some great pancakes or biscuits!


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## maddy (Oct 30, 2010)

Has anyone tried putting a silver coin in their milk jug, as the settlers did?


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## Vickivail98 (Sep 26, 2014)

$3 a gallon!!! I've found that ours (unopened) will be fine for at least 8-9 days. If it starts to turn I use it for yogurt, baking or in smoothies. It tastes nothing like pasteurized milk that has turned.


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## lexierowsell (Dec 10, 2013)

I'd rather feed it to my chickens than sell it for $3/g. 

$8-$10, MINIMUM here, and then when you go to grass-fed, organic, and organic grass-fed (especially w A2 genetics...) it just climbs. 

That said, we still wouldn't make money on our organic, 100% pasture raised grass-fed, A2 herd if we sold milk. We aren't quite to the point where the balance shifts. Maybe next year, with a few more homebreds in the line.


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## arnie (Apr 26, 2012)

as I milk every day for years i.v found that keeping the milk cold as possaple helps keep it from turning . cows milk taste fresh longer I could save up cream for butter over a week no problem ;with the goat I give it four days


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## lexierowsell (Dec 10, 2013)

On the question you posted originally: 

Our cows milk stays fresh and clean tasting for 10-14 days, easily. Clean glass jars, fridge. Sheeps milk is fresh two weeks too, goat 7-10. 

I can't bear the taste of grained dairy animals past the day it's milked (and I really don't like it then, it's why I have a farm and 17 dairy animals...), more than a couple days it goes to the dogs or chickens.


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## Awnry Abe (Mar 21, 2012)

It's all in the handling. The folks doing the collecting need to treat it like an organ transplant. Milk it. Strain it. Chill it. No jacking around feeding the chickens while it sits on the counter "cuz it's already warm." Every moment that it is above 35 degrees just shortens shelf life. According to our customers, 2 week old milk is just as good as day old. YMMV if the stop at the dairy is the first of many errands. If it's the middle of summer and you do that, you better grab a glass and a pile of cookies when you get home.


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## Gretchen Ann (Aug 30, 2010)

I have a question, I'm just curious, not trying to start an argument.

Do you guys buy a lot of milk at one time that you store it for so long? Or don't you drink/use much milk?

I know we are dairy farmers so we have all the milk we can use, but the 2 of us use a gallon of milk every 2 1/2 days. How can you make a gallon of milk last 2 weeks?


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## Awnry Abe (Mar 21, 2012)

by "lasting 2 weeks", i was referring to staying fresh that long, not dwindling down one cup at a time over two weeks. I have several bi- weekly customers that have given us that feedback. Typical usage in their case would be something like 2 gallons per week, and they buy 4 at a time because of the drive. I am certain from my own experience on the consumption side that a gallon that sits in the fridge undisturbed will stay fresh for 2 weeks. But even very new gallons spoil relatively quickly once popped, probably because of sitting out on the counter while the kids eat their cereal, picking up extra air-borne critters, etc. I would say the big slide is from the gradual warming while it is sitting out.

The single biggest handling mistake that we discovered we were making was co-mingling the just-milked-and-still-warm milk in the same fridge as the already chilled milk. 10 gallons or so of hot mass stuck in a regular fridge with other cold milk will raise the internal temp to 60 for several hours. When we dedicated one fridge to be the "get cold" fridge and the other to the "is cold" fridge, freshness (and our customer base) started to stick around. We also use the freezer for a couple of hours. Its all about getting the temp down fast and keeping it down. What happens after it leaves the farm is out of my control, but I do my best to educate.


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## Vickivail98 (Sep 26, 2014)

lexierowsell said:


> I'd rather feed it to my chickens than sell it for $3/g.
> 
> $8-$10, MINIMUM here, and then when you go to grass-fed, organic, and organic grass-fed (especially w A2 genetics...) it just climbs.
> 
> That said, we still wouldn't make money on our organic, 100% pasture raised grass-fed, A2 herd if we sold milk. We aren't quite to the point where the balance shifts. Maybe next year, with a few more homebreds in the line.



What kind of cows do you have that are producing A2?


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## lexierowsell (Dec 10, 2013)

Vickivail98 said:


> What kind of cows do you have that are producing A2?



Jerseys.


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## GoldenCityMuse (Apr 15, 2009)

Nice photo of Pixie!


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## barnbilder (Jul 1, 2005)

We have gone a month with goat milk. Stockpiled, dried everyone off and went on vacation and came back in time for more to freshen. Keys to milk longevity are: Full jars, less airspace means less air that could have contaminants. Of course, clean handling, healthy animals, high somatic cell counts and dirty jars make for sour milk. As stated, get it down to just above freezing quickly and keep it there. The best way to make milk sour quickly is to drink out of it, a little mouth germs and some air space equals science experiment gone awry. The biggest difference between storebought milk and fresh raw milk is what it turns into when it turns. Sometimes raw milk turns into yogurt or cottage cheese or something, storebought, not so much. Raw milk has "beneficial stuff" in it that keeps it from spoiling compared to milk that has been pasteurized.


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## motdaugrnds (Jul 3, 2002)

When I was milking 3 Nubians daily and getting over a gallon of milk daily from each one of them, I started freezing it in glass jars. Just strain it immediately, placing it into glass jars with only about 1-1/2 inches from top and do NOT tighten the lid. Place it immediately into the freezer. Then when I take it out, let it defrost in the fridge, shake it well and it tastes (and the texture is) like the day it was taken from the goat.

Then I started turning it into "condensed" milk the day it was taken from the does. That was simmered until about half of it was gone and then placed in freezer ziplock baggies. When defrosted in the fridge, it is just like store bought canned milk only healthier.


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## mrs whodunit (Feb 3, 2012)

LOL This is an old thread.


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## SCKYHWoman (Oct 10, 2008)

But gave me that just started getting raw milk some useful information Thank You


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## Astrid (Nov 13, 2010)

Don't throw it out once it starts turning. It's good for baking. Raw milk turns sour. Store milk just rots. 

http://www.theprairiehomestead.com/2013/05/20-ways-to-use-sour-raw-milk.html


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## Michael W. Smith (Jun 2, 2002)

bstuart29 said:


> Yesterday found a local source of raw cow milk for $3/gallon . . . . . . .


This thread was started on 04/24/13. Hmmmmm . . . . I wonder what they are paying now?

I've been paying $2.00 / gallon to the local dairy farmer - getting it out of his bulk tank. He used to charge $1.50 when I started getting it.

I guess I better check to see if his price has changed!


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