Discover NC Dairy videos

The interactive map “Discover NC Dairy” on the Discover NC Dairy overview page contains the following videos:

• The Feed Barn: This area of the farm is the key to nutritious milk. Aside from water, there’s nothing more important than food that impacts a cow’s ability to produce high-quality milk.

• Sustainability and Recycling: Dairy farmers are among the original recyclers in our society. They not only do it to preserve and protect our environment, but also because it simply makes financial sense and contributes to their farms’ sustainability.

• The Nursery: The nursery is very similar to hospitals where babies are kept, in that it allows for farmers to protect the fragile calves in their earliest hours of life.

• Vacation and Dry Cows: Many people may not even realize this, but dairy cows are not milked all of the time.

• Dairy Breeds: There are six primary breeds of dairy cattle raised in the United States: Holstein, Jersey, Brown Swiss, Guernsey, Ayrshire and the Milking Shorthorn.

• A Family Business: Dairy farming is a tough, yet fulfilling business that requires people with dedication, strength, will and compassion for animals. Only about 2% of the United States population is involved in production farming, and less than 1% of that total is involved in dairy farming.

• The Milking Parlor: This is where the real action is, where all of the hard work dedication and care for the cow reveals itself – in the milking parlor.

• Bulk Tank and Cooling: On most dairy farms around the Southeast, a cow’s milk is sent through a series of tubes and pipes from the milking parlor into a large stainless steel refrigerated holding tank or ‘bulk tank.’ When milk comes out of a cow’s udder, it is around 100 degrees Fahrenheit, so it needs to be cooled down quickly.

• Transporting Milk: Transporting milk is one of the most important parts of the process that gets fresh milk into stores, and then into your refrigerator!