close

Be Local when buying milk

By Frances Borsodi Zajac, For The Greene County Messenger 3 min read

The next time you stop by the store to pick up a gallon of milk, make sure it’s from Pennsylvania.

Be Local means supporting local dairy farmers through a Pennsylvania campaign called “Choose PA Dairy: Goodness that Matters.”

Launched this past spring, Choose PA Dairy is a partnership of the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture, the Center for Dairy Excellence, Pennsylvania Dairymen’s Association, PA Preferred, American Dairy Association Northeast, the Professional Dairy Managers of Pennsylvania, and the Pennsylvania Farm Bureau.

“The dairy sector is the largest of Pennsylvania’s $135.7 billion agriculture industry,” Russell Redding, state agriculture secretary, said in a press release that announced the campaign. “The dairy industry contributes $14.7 billion annually to our economy, and supports 52,000 jobs in the state, but numbers don’t tell the whole story. There’s a person on both sides of the equation – on one side, Pennsylvania’s 6,570 dairy farm families – our friends and neighbors who pour their lives and livelihoods into producing the highest quality products available. And on the other side we have consumers who want the very best for their families. When you buy local milk, you’re investing in your community, your family, and Pennsylvania’s economy.”

The campaign is teaching the public there are two primary ways to find local milk: looking for the PA Preferred® logo or the plant code 42 on the packaging.

“Both indicate that the milk was produced in Pennsylvania. Plant codes, which represent the state in which the milk was processed, are usually printed near the top of the container or on the lid. A code beginning with 42 signals that milk was processed in Pennsylvania and likely to have come from a farm within the state,” the press release explained.

Commenting recently on the progress of the campaign, Will Nichols, communications specialist for the state Dept. of Agriculture, said Choose PA Dairy has been well received since its launching.

“This is aimed at the fluid milk market, encouraging people to drink milk,” explained Nichols. “We’re seeing people interested in championing that cause of supporting local producers and recognizing that milk is a great option. As they say, milk is nature’s most perfect beverage.”

Yes, there’s nothing like the taste of ice, cold milk.

And the Choose PA Dairy website notes the nine essential vitamins that milk contains: calcium, vitamin D, phosphorus, riboflavin, protein, vitamin B-12, potassium, vitamin A and niacin. Milk provides good nutrition.

“Research shows that regardless of fat content, dairy foods like milk, cheese and yogurt are associated with improved bone health, especially in children and teens, and reduced risk of cardiovascular disease, Type 2 diabetes, and lower blood pressure in adults,” the Choose PA Dairy website explains.

Dairy farmers themselves make valuable contributions.

Bill Jackson of Jackson Farms in Redstone Township, noted that dairies “provide food that’s produced locally and they are part of the local economy. Like any business, they stimulate the economy. I think that’s important.”

And like all farmers, they maintain Pennsylvania’s environment and natural resources. They are stewards of the land.

For more information on the campaign, visit www.choosepadairy.com.

Those interested in joining the Be Local Network can contact Ted Flowers at 724-425-7231 or by email at tflowers@heraldstandard.com. Discount cards are available at the Herald-Standard, 8 E. Church St., Uniontown, and at the Greene County Messenger, 82 W. High St., Waynesburg.

CUSTOMER LOGIN

If you have an account and are registered for online access, sign in with your email address and password below.

NEW CUSTOMERS/UNREGISTERED ACCOUNTS

Never been a subscriber and want to subscribe, click the Subscribe button below.

Starting at $4.79/week.

Subscribe Today