Fill Your Plate Blog

By Heide Kennedy, Arizona Farm Bureau Communications Intern

Whenever you get a jug of milk from the store, you probably notice that it says “Pasteurized” on the front of it. In fact, if you look at any of the jugs of milk on the shelves, you’ll see that they all say that they have been pasteurized unless they’re being sold as raw milk. So, what exactly does it mean when milk says that it’s been pasteurized?

Pasteurization is a process that milk undergoes to remove harmful bacteria that might be present in the milk. The process was developed about 150 years ago by Louis Pasteur (Hence the name!). He was trying to find methods for keeping harmful bacteria at bay. New Jersey was the first state to have a milk plant that had a pasteurizer, but now all milk sold in the United States is required to be pasteurized unless it’s sold as raw milk.

So, how is milk pasteurized? The pasteurization process begins when chilled milk is heated as it’s passed between stainless steel plates to about 161 degrees Fahrenheit. It is then held at this temperature for about 15 seconds before rapidly being cooled back to its usual temperature.

It’s crazy to think that just changing the temperature of the milk for that short period is enough to remove the harmful bacteria from the milk and that it does so without significantly changing the nutritional content of the milk. The only small change in the milk is that the tiny amount of vitamin C (which is less than 10% of the recommended daily allowance) doesn’t survive the pasteurization process.

The pasteurization process is honestly pretty amazing! It allows us to have both safe and nutritious milk to enjoy! If you want to read more about milk, and Arizona dairy in particular, check out the Fill Your Plate blog for some of our past articles. Also, June is National Dairy Month, so more dairy articles will be coming out this entire month!

By Heide Kennedy, Arizona Farm Bureau Communications Intern

We’ve been posting a lot about milk this month, and what better way to continue than to give a list of some delicious recipes that use lots of dairy products! From savory main course recipes to sweet desserts, to protein-filled breakfasts, dairy is so versatile and can be used in so many ways!

Milk Braised Pork Loin

Poutine

Blueberry Yogurt Bark

S’mores Ice Cream Pie

Cream Cheese Toast 3 Ways

PB&J Greek Yogurt

Homemade Peach Ice Cream

Pancetta and Cottage Cheese Baked Macaroni

Pan Seared Scallops with White Cheddar Grits and Creole Cream Sauce

Air Fryer Cheese Curds with Honey Sriracha Sauce

Vanilla and Mixed Berry Chia Pudding

Banana Peanut Butter Yogurt Parfait

Cheesy Fajita Quesadilla

Brown Sugar Pecan Pie Cheesecake

These are just a few dairy recipes. There are so many more on the Fill Your Plate recipes tab!

By Heide Kennedy, Arizona Farm Bureau Communications Intern

When you walk along the refrigerator cases of milk in your local grocery store, you’ll see that all of the jugs have different colored lids. This signifies what kind of milk it is, such as whole, two percent, or skim. Not only that but there are other kinds of specialty milks too, such as A2 milk or lactose-free milk. Below you’ll find a quick description of each kind of milk and see what sets them apart from each other, according to The Dairy Alliance.

Whole Milk – Considered to be full-fat milk. It contains 3.5% fat by weight, which means that an 8-ounce serving of milk has 149 calories and 8 grams of fat.

2% Milk – Like the name implies, this milk contains 2% fat by weight, resulting in 5 grams of fat and 120 calories in an 8-ounce serving.

1% Milk – Also as the name implies, this milk contains 1% fat by weight, and an 8-ounce serving contains 2.5 grams of fat and 100 calories.

Skim Milk – Also known as nonfat milk, this milk has 0% fat by weight, and as a result, has 0 grams of fat and only 80 calories in an 8-ounce serving.

A2 Milk – Normal milk contains both A1 and A2 beta-casein proteins, but some cows produce milk that only has the A2 beta-casein protein. This A2 milk is sold for those with sensitive digestive systems, as it is easier to digest.

Lactose-Free Milk – Lactose is a naturally occurring sugar in milk that many people can’t digest. So, to eliminate the lactose, manufacturers add lactase, an enzyme that breaks down the lactose in the milk.

Regardless of what kind of milk you choose, they all still contain the same essential nutrients. The main differences are only in fat content and the removal of certain sugars or proteins that some are intolerant to.

Arizona is home to lots of local dairy farms that take pride in producing high-quality dairy products for you to enjoy! Pick some up at your local grocery store today!

By Heide Kennedy, Arizona Farm Bureau Communications Intern

Did you know that June is National Dairy Month? With that being said, we’re going to be posting a lot about dairy, specifically Arizona dairy throughout this entire month! What better way to kick it off than with a bunch of fun facts from the Arizona Farm Bureau, The Dairy Alliance, and Arizona Milk Producers about the dairy industry!

Holstein dairy cows in a barn at the Triple G Dairy in Buckeye, AZ. PHOTO BY JACK KURTZ

• Dairy is one of the largest agricultural commodities in Arizona!
• Arizona is home to around 45 family-owned commercial dairies.
• Each dairy has anywhere from 850 head of cows to 10,000 head of cows!
• There are two very common dairy cow breeds in Arizona dairies. Jerseys are the light brown cows, their milk has a higher milk fat content. Holstein cows are the typical black and white cows that we usually picture when we hear “Dairy cow.”
• Cows are usually about 2 years of age when they first begin to produce milk.
• Cows can produce approximately 10 gallons of milk per day and are milked for about 305 days out of the year. This equals about 465.6 gallons per month.
• A good dairy cow produces about 15,000-18,000 gallons in their 5 to 7 year production timeframe.
• To make all this milk, cows eat about 100 pounds of feed per day!
• Despite the date printed on the jug, milk is actually good for about 5 days past that date.
• 97% of all the milk in our grocery stores is produced right here in Arizona.
• Local milk is transported from dairy to store within 48 hours!
• A good way to know if your milk is Arizona milk is to look at the code! If it reads “#04” then it came from a local dairy!

The dairy industry is pretty cool, and there’s a lot more that you can learn about it! Keep an eye out for more posts about dairy throughout the month and take a look at some of our past articles!