I was recently given the opportunity to take a tour of a local dairy farm here in Michigan, with United Dairy Industry of Michigan and other Michigan (and Ohio) Bloggers! For this tour we were given the privilege of visiting the Goma Dairy Farm in Marlette, MI and meeting with the van den Goor family!
When the van den Goor family originally purchased their farm in 1999 it started with 350 cows and has since grown to 2,700 cows that produce 29,000 gallons of milk each day! That is about two milk trucks full! One of these trucks goes to a local Yoplait plant and the other goes to a local Kroger for processing. I have to say that I am super excited to know that the milk I drink comes from Michigan farms, and they estimate that one out of every 10 gallons of milk within a Michigan Kroger is from the Goma Dairy Farm!
Goma Dairy Farm employs 32 full-time employees and buys all of their feed for their animals from local crop farmers. How awesome is that, they not only have local workers but they also support the local farmers by buying from them!
Meet the van den Goor Family!
Their son was not present for the tour
The van den Goor family is very caring of their farm and the animals, they not only do their best at making sure that the dairy provided by their animals is of the best but they make sure their farm is safe and clean for the animals. So safe, we were required to wear little booties to ensure that we didn’t bring in any germs that may be on the bottoms of our shoes!
Because of their care for their farm and the animals their farm has been environmentally verified, which basically means they put a lot of time, love, and effort in their farm
Dairy Health & Wellness Facts
- Milk contains nine essential nutrients, including calcium, vitamin D, potassium and protein.
- It takes three cups of broccoli to equal the calcium in one cup of milk.
- The 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans recommend those nine and older get at least three servings of dairy every day for stronger bones and overall good health.
- Yogurt can deliver nearly a third of your daily calcium needs in just one 8-ounce serving.
- Milk is high in calcium and vitamin D. It’s a good source of protein, and one glass has as much potassium as a small banana.
- Milk and milk products are by far the lowest cost food source of calcium, and among the lowest cost sources of riboflavin and vitamin B12.
Below you can find more links to some PDF Fact files for your convenience.
Pictures from the tour!
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- Where there is milk, there is kitty
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- The van den Goor family
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- Moms milking for calves
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- Cows in the feeding corral
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- Bloggers Learning
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- Cows in the feeding corral
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- One day old calf
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- Lots of milking cows
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- Learning about the feed
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- I was the only brave one
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- Milk coming from the cows
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- Baby Calf
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- Lunch!
Fact Sheets you can download
Milk
Organic Milk
Dairy Farms & The Environment Fact Sheet
Animal Care Fact Sheet
MDNB Facts 2012
We had some great speakers that I’d like to thank for spending the day with us and giving us valuable information!
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- Facebook’s Dairy Mom – Katie Dellar
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- Registered Dietitian – Deanne Kelleher
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- Vetrinarian Dr. Ron Erskine
I did have some questions from a couple readers and I kind of got some answers for them.
Bianca wanted to know how one gets into diary farming, if it isn’t run in the family?
I’m going to answer this the best I can based off the information we received and that I can remember! Most do it because it runs in the family. For the van der Goor family they both came from farming families but came from the Netherlands to Michigan because it was much cheaper to be a farmer here than there. Although diary farming runs in the family, it kind of skipped a generation for them so it wasn’t something they were handed, they had to work a lot of hours a week to get where they are now and they are still working their butts off to continue.
Kristi wanted to know what type of feed is given to the animals and if it is GMO or non-GMO feed?
This question didn’t get asked directly, but I am going to say that it is non-GMO feed. Since the van den Goor family purchases the feed for their herd from local farmers I couldn’t imagine it being genetically modified.
Thank you for the questions ladies, I hope my answers are what you were looking for!
Now for something super awesome for YOU! You can always go to the Michigan Dairy News YouTube channel and find some great videos about Michigan farms.
A Giveaway
I received an awesome gift for participating in this blog tour and UDIM has offered the exact same gift for one of my readers! Here’s what you get!
One of Shawn Ann’s World readers will win a “Get Mooooving” dairy gift bag, including a Magic Bullet 17-piece Hi-Speed Blender/Mixer system, delicious dairy recipes, (which I will be posting for everyone) $50 MasterCard gift card, reusable grocery bag, Got Milk? baseball cap, and diary-themed socks!
To Enter:
Valid for Residents of the United States and that are age 18 or older. Please no PO Boxes. This giveaway ends on 08/09/2012 at 12:01 AM EST.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
The Winner will be chosen by Rafflecopter. Winner will be announced on Shawn Ann’s World and will receive an email. The winner will then have 48 hours to claim their prize.
Disclosure: I received the same free products in the giveaway prize pack as a thank you for participating in this tour. All opinions are that of my own. No other monetary compensation took place.
About Shawn Ann Griffith
Besides the fact that the baby calf is soooo cute, I learned that their son Mason wants to be a full-time dairy farmer! Love that!
I learned that Michigan dairy farmers are dedicated to providing us with safe, high quality dairy products. Environmental Stewardship and cow care and comfort are integral to producing wholesome dairy products to us and our families.
i learned According to the USDA, 98 percent of U.S. dairy farms are family owned and operated, sometimes by multiple generations of the family.
The average Michigan cow produces approximately 23,260 pounds of milk each year. That’s 2,704 gallons of milk a year or more than 8 gallons of milk every day of her milking period.
janetfaye (at) gmail (dot) com
Research has shown that when following a reduced-calorie diet, people who included three servings of
milk, cheese or yogurt each day lost significantly more weight and body fat,
The average Michigan cow produces approximately 23,260 pounds of milk each year. That’s 2,704 gallons of milk a year or more than 8 gallons of milk every day of her milking period.
I found out that less than 2 percent of the population feeds 100 percent of the people!
on the UDIM website I learned that dairy foods may help reduce the risk of osteoporosis and hypertension
on the Choose chocolate milk website i learned that chocolate milk promotes healthy skin
The United Dairy Industry of Michigan (UDIM) is the umbrella organization for the American Dairy Association and Dairy Council of Michigan. These non-profit organizations provide dairy product promotion and nutrition education services on behalf of funding members.
janetfaye (at) gmail (dot) com
Nutrient-rich chocolate milk can help you refuel and rehydrate within the critical two-hour recovery window after exercise.
janetfaye (at) gmail (dot) com
I learned that In 2011, dairy cows in Michigan produced approximately 8.5 billion pounds of milk.
I learned that they have some cool recipes on their site. I like the Banana Fudge Smoothie
I learned that chocolate milk promotes normal blood pressure and helps build and maintain lean muscle
I found this interesting: In 2011, dairy cows in Michigan produced approximately 8.5 billion pounds of milk.
I learned that there are schools you can go to to learn more about dairy farming
I learned from the choose chocolate site that chocolate milk has the same essentials as milk (although they dont mention the added calories and carbs it has, but who’s counting?)
The dairy industry in Michigan contributes $14.7 billion to the state’s economy.
I learned that over 14 billion dollars is made annually from dairy farming on the state
the nutrients in chocolate milk Promote a healthy immune system
There are 9 farm families
The United Dairy Industry of Michigan (UDIM) is the umbrella organization for the American Dairy Association and Dairy Council of Michigan. These non-profit organizations provide dairy product promotion and nutrition education services on behalf of funding members.
Chocolate milk contains the same 9 essentials nutrients as white milk
There is 9 farm families!
I was surprised that dairy is the top segment of agriculture in Michigan.
i learned According to the USDA, 98 percent of U.S. dairy farms are family owned and operated, sometimes by multiple generations of the family.
Crops have been destroyed nationwide as the worst drought in more than 50 years has swept across the United States.
On the UDIM website there are recipes.
Nutrient-rich chocolate milk can help you refuel and rehydrate within the critical two-hour recovery window after exercise.
There are 9 farm families
That they constantly work with government agencies and university researchers to develop new technologies aimed at conserving natural resources and protecting the environment.
It’s not a great thing, but I can’t believe that 72% of the country is in drought. Just so sad…
The average Michigan cow produces approximately 23,260 pounds of milk each year. That’s 2,704 gallons of milk a year or more than 8 gallons of milk every day of her milking period.
United Dairy Industry of Michigan and Dairy Management, Inc. work together to implement checkoff programs that help increase sales and demand for dairy products and dairy ingredients to help improve the economic well-being of Michigan’s dairy producers.
I LOVE how they’re promoting the farm families. It makes it so personal to feel that you’re helping a family when you purchase a gallon of milk!
WHo knew that chocolate milk is a good after exercise drink? Yay :)
There are great educational resources on the website.
I learned that, according to the USDA, 98% of US dairy farms are family owned and operated!
I learned that There are approximately 1,900 Grade A dairy farms in Michigan
Thank you for hosting this giveaway
Louis
pumuckler {at} gmail {dot} com