Dairy mean free range eggs, cheese, milk, butter, cream, yoghurt, ice cream and sometimes even raw milk. Thousands of dairies have closed down over the last 30 years as ‘Cheap food’ policy and supermarket ‘loss leaders’ have forced down the price of milk to farmers. Those milk producers that have survived have usually got really big and use specially bred cows to reduce cost and increase production often at the cost of animal welfare. Other dairies have diversified and added value to their milk like making cheese. Did you know that we now have more varieties of cheese than the French?
Other dairies produce ice cream, yoghurt or sell their milk raw (unpasteurised, un-homogenised) to local people using a vending machine. These farmers have gone back to traditional breeds of cow that live longer, produce less milk but of a better quality. Selling direct can mean getting £1.50/litre instead of 25p market price.
If your local Dairy, or egg producer is not on our map please email their details to [email protected] and we will add you to our monthly prize draw.
Contemporary farm shop with traditional values