Real Milk from Texas Daily Harvest, Urban Acres, Dallas
August 2012 Update: Texas Daily Harvest has closed its creamery, much to my dismay. Lavon Farms still runs out of raw milk periodically, so get on their email list if you want availability updates. My current recommendation for low-temp pasturized milk is Mill-King, available at Patina Green and Urban Acres. See comments below the article for details.
I am a huge fan of real milk, preferably raw milk from grass-fed cows. The most convenient DFW source of raw milk, the Lucky Layla Farm Store at Lavon Farms in Plano, Texas, has been so popular that demand is sometimes greater than the supply.
If yours is one of the families disappointed when you’re unable to buy raw milk, I have an alternative for you: real milk from East Texas organic dairy, Texas Daily Harvest. It’s available locally at Urban Acres in Oak Cliff, at Whole Foods in Dallas and Plano, and through group and private delivery. They also have some good outlets around Austin, so Austinites check their website for locations. What makes Texas Daily Harvest milk “real milk?” It’s low-heat pasteurized and not homogenized, so it has the cream on top (shake it to mix before you pour). Low-pasteurized means it’s heated to the minimum temperature required by law, so it still contains some good natural bacteria that you need for a healthy gut, as well as enzymes to help you digest the milk. If you happen to be out near Sulphur Springs, stop by Texas Daily Harvest and buy some raw milk from farmers, Ramy and Kent Jisha. I’ve toured their farm, and I am so impressed by these smart, conscientious farmers. I’m also thankful for them. Their passion and hard work keep good, real food on my table. Whether I buy their milk from Whole Foods or have it delivered (with free-range eggs and meat) to my house, I make sure I am well-stocked with my favorite real food. My husband and I drink a couple of gallons per week. If you can’t buy real milk, don’t bother drinking milk at all. Really. Ultra-Pasteurized milk from cows in confinement dairies, even if it’s organic, is not real food. For more info, check out my first post about real milk, and this one too. Be well! P.S. For my friends who prefer goat milk, or want to locate a raw cow milk dairy close to you, check out the Weston A. Price Foundation’s Real Milk site.
The Healthy, Happy Eater 
I am fairly new to the whole Real Food / Traditional Food movement. I’ve slowly been making changes to our diet. I wasn’t quite ready to try raw milk, so when I found the milk from Texas Daily Harvest, I was thrilled. It’s the best tasting milk that I have ever tried, and I love that I am helping to support a local business.
I agree Tempie, Texas Daily Harvest is the best milk I’ve ever tasted! I wish their raw milk was available in Dallas, but I’m so happy that their lightly pasteurized, non-homogenized milk is. If you’d like to engage with local people interested in traditional food, there’s a meeting in McKInney tonight that you might be interested in. It’s the McKinney chapter of the Weston A. Price Foundation, and we’re meeting from 6:30 – 8:30 p.m. at Local Yocal at 213 N Tennessee, just off the square. They’ll be doing a sauerkraut demo and discussing sourdough bread. If you come, bring a lawnchair. To get on the list for future meetings, contact Kathy Harris at mckinneywap@gmail.com. Take care!
Any suggestions now that Texas Daily Harvest has closed their creamery? I’m not quite ready to go to raw milk and loved the low pasturization and non-homogenization of TDH. Being able to buy it at my local Whole Foods was also incredibly convenient. I’m back to Organic Valley Whole milk but not happy.
Hi ER, yes I do have a suggestion, but it may not be a convenient one unless you live near Oak Cliff or McKinney. Wasn’t it nice to drop into any Whole Foods and buy TDH milk?! Sigh.
There’s a creamery near Waco called Mill-King, that’s gearing up to serve this market. It’s low-temp pasteurized, and they say non-homogenized, but it sure seemed homogenized to me. It was good, but not quite as creamy as TDH. You can buy it from Urban Acres in Oak Cliff, and at Patina Green in McKinney. Quantities seem limited. I bought some at Urban Acres a couple of Saturdays ago, and after I got my two gallons, there were only two gallons left. And I know that the dairy had just delivered a fresh supply the night before, because I spoke to them on the phone as they were driving up to Dallas. If Patina Green is more convenient, I think they take orders to reserve Mill-King gallons so you won’t be disappointed. Demand may still outstrip supply for a while. I suggested that Mill-King sell at the Coppell Farmers Market; when TDH was out there, they were always swarmed. Mill-King sells at three farmers markets in Austin, and they said they don’t expect to have enought supply to sell at famers markets in the Dallas area for a while.
Last week I went back to Lavon Farms for raw. While I prefer raw, I made the tradeoff for TDH milk because of their organic practices … and great taste. In a perfect world, I’d drink raw and organic, but I’m happy to at least have a couple of options for real milk. Maybe I’ll petition the Farmer Branch city council to allow dairy cows. 😉
Good luck, and let me know how you make out. Be well!
http://www.mill-kingmarket.com/About_Low-Temp_Pasteurized_Milk.html
http://urbanacres.wordpress.com/
http://patinagreen.typepad.com/
Hi, this is Rhianna Miller of Mill-King Market & Creamery. I wanted to let you know that we have expanded our market a tiny bit in DFW, and we hope to be in a few larger stores in a couple weeks. We are ironing out details. Check the website for new places that are carrying our milk. And I wanted to let you know that we definitely do not have a homogenizer, and do not homogenize the milk. Also, our cream level is testing higher than TDH. We like to remind people that we have Holstein and Brown Swiss cows along with our Jerseys. Both breeds have less carotene in the milk than Jerseys, which shows up in the the milk as yellow therefore it is more difficult to separate the milk from the cream. Brown Swiss cows are also noted to have a higher protein content, and the Holsteins are in there to balance the palatablity. We right now are plenty of milk to meet supply and we are happy to add new vendors. Also, we still raw milk at our farm although that is 120 miles from Dallas. Thank you!!
Hi, Rhianna!
I live in North Dallas (near the Whole Foods on Forest/Preston). Will your milk be carried at WF anytime soon? Where is the nearest place for me to buy your milk?
Thanks!
Janice
We hope to be in WFM in Dallas around the first of November. Until then either Patina Green or Urban Acres will be the closest-even though those are still always. Thanks!
I hope the one in Arlington too please!!
Garg Farms is just North-East of McKinney/Frisco/Melissa, and has raw whole milk from pure-bred registered Jersey cows. We are Grade-A certified and are permitted to retail raw milk. We just started production on 2/14/13, and have raw milk available daily at the farm in limited quantities. We will shortly begin producing pasteurized non-homogenized milk as well, which will be available at the farm and at some major stores in the Dallas area. For more information visit out website at gargfarms dot com, and join us on Facebook.
Garg Farms no longer sells raw milk. Lavon Farms has suspended raw milk sales because their insurance premium was raised so high they fear we will not spend $13 on a gallon of raw milk. I would in a heartbeat … after all, it’s nothing to drop $13+ on a bottle of wine. I’m not having any success finding an alternative as I prefer raw over any type of pasteurization. I am befuddled by the fact that Texas has one of the most lenient gun control, but strangles the access of raw milk. I think more people die of gunshot wounds in this state than of illness from raw milk, even if figured on a per capita basis.
Hello Everyone,
We have recently launched our raw milk dairy with deliveries to the Dallas / Fort Worth area. Our cows are 100% grass fed, even during milking. We use a herd share arrangement to allow for the fun things we like to do, like milking on pasture and offering delivery service. We’re also the only Dairy Herd Share program (that we are aware of) where you receive your share of beef as cows reach the end of their life! You can own a Jersey cow & have great raw milk & meat and never leave the city… how cool is that?! Check out our website to learn more and find a delivery location near you: http://www.CheerfulHeartFarms.com.
Hi Greg! I’m so glad to have found this post and your reply. I hope you’ll consider expanding your social media presence as I know many people i the D/FW area that have been searching for true grass-fed raw milk. I’m looking forward to trying your products.
Hi Twinkle! Thanks for the reply. I am open to suggestions for getting the word out via social media. Thanks again! Greg
Hello all , we are Liberty Farms dairy near Hico, TX. we provide grass fed raw milk and are currently trying to set up a CSA so we can have a CSA member pick-up your raw milk for you here at the farm. We will be producing low-temp pasteurized, non-homogenized milk beginning 10/01/2014. Feel free to visit our farm during daytime hours any day..
We support the other small dairies out there that are working hard to provide a product that corporate America does want in the market place.
We invite folks who love raw milk or low temp pasteurized, non-homogenized milk to visit our website and call to place an order at http://www.libertydairyfarms.com
have a dairy nice day,
Conan