Description
About our cows: Our cows are 100% A2 and grass-fed, moved to fresh pasture regularly and supplemented with natural minerals and vitamins, including Redmond salt, Thorvin kelp and free choice individual minerals from Advanced Biological Concepts. We do not feed our cows any grains. Sometimes we give organic alfalfa pellets and/or black oil sunflower seeds at milking time, though we’re not currently doing that. If we ever need to, we support our cow’s health naturally with homeopathy, herbs and/or essential oils, we do not use conventional vaccinations in any of our animals. Our cows test negative annually for Johnes (correlated with Crohn’s disease in humans), BLV (potentially linked to leukemia) and BVD (an immune suppressing virus).
Milking practices and milk: We milk our cows daily by hand, outdoors in the fresh air, collecting the milk into stainless steel pails and then filtering into glass jars. The cream will naturally rise to the top and you can either remove some cream to use separately or give the jar a gentle shake to reincorporate the cream. The amount of cream can vary depending on forage and how far the cow is into her current lactation (the percentage of cream increases over the lactation) but all our cows are Jerseys, who produce a hight butterfat milk – much more than the industrial standard of 4% cream that is include with “whole” milk (see the photos for cream lines).
Jar deposit and care: Please bring your jars and stainless steel lids back each week to trade for fresh jars and we will refund the deposit when you return jars for the last time without picking up new jars. We recommend thoroughly rinsing the jar with cold water as soon as you have finished the milk and then washing with warm soapy water and letting air dry with the lid off. Please do not use any dish soap with fragrance. We reserve the right to reject the return of any damaged jars and lids and retain the deposit.
Unprocessed raw milk: If you are not accustomed to drinking raw milk, we recommend you start very slowly to allow your body to adjust to the change. The state of West Virginia requires that we include the following warning: “Consuming unpasteurized raw milk may increase your risk of foodborne illness, especially for children, elderly, immunocompromised individuals, and persons with certain medical conditions”.
Greshka Lee (verified owner) –
Better with Thyme is an absolute gem! This family-owned farm has exceeded all our expectations with its incredible offerings and warm, welcoming vibe. We recently subscribed for their raw milk, and I can confidently say it’s the best we’ve ever had —rich, full of cream, and bursting with flavor. You can truly taste the quality and care they put into their animals and every step of the process.
It’s clear that Better with Thyme prioritizes the health and happiness of their Jersey cows and all their animals, as well as the satisfaction of their customers. Supporting a local, Christian, family-run business like this is such a joy, especially when they deliver such outstanding products. We also appreciate their hospitality in allowing us to meet their animals and we definitely recommend them to anyone looking for fresh, high-quality raw milk, pastured meat, eggs straight from the source.
Thank you, Better with Thyme, for providing such a wonderful experience and products!
Josie Ball (verified owner) –
Sarah and Peter truly care about permaculture, healthy food and raising quality animals. We have been getting milk from them and it’s the best tasting milk I have ever had. I trust them to provide us the best tasting and best quality dairy we can get. Knowing where our food comes from is so important, I love that we can see the cows that provide us with the milk we drink.