FROM
DIRT
TO
TABLE
DIRT
Our quest to create the highest quality artisan cheeses using milk from healthy, happy animals starts from the ground up, as our dirt is key to all that we do here at Green Dirt Farm.
We give rigorous attention to managing the grazing of our flocks in order to build healthy soil and grow nutritious pasture grasses. Raising our sheep on carefully tended pastures not only produces happy sheep and high-quality, flavorful milk; it also prevents soil erosion and helps to build top soil.
We believe that healthy soil grows yummy grass, which nourishes our ewes and produces fantastic milk. That rich milk, in turn, creates wonderful cheeses that nurture our customers, ourselves, and our community.
GRASS
We believe that grass-fed sheep are the happiest and most productive. We practice management intensive grazing to encourage the growth of the grasses that our sheep love.
As the ewes munch on this rich smorgasbord of grasses throughout the seasons, the flavors in the milk change, and so do the flavors in the cheeses. We celebrate these unique flavors as they reflect what the sheep are eating in the moment and remind us of the seasonality of life on the farm.
In addition, sheep milk has been shown to be more easily digested than cow’s milk and grass-fed milk naturally contains more omega-3 fatty acids, conjugated linoleic acid, beta-carotene, and vitamins E & A. This enriched nutritional profile means our sheep’s milk and grass-fed cow’s milk products are both healthier and more flavorful.
SHEEP
At Green Dirt Farm, we believe that happy ewes make the most delicious milk, and we take great pride in the care and wellbeing of our animals.
But you don’t have to take our word for it, we are proud that our farm is certified Animal Welfare Approved. This means that we raise our animals humanely, outdoors on pasture, allowing them to behave naturally and socialize freely. We are audited yearly to ensure that we are maintaining Animal Welfare Approved’s strict standards. To learn more about the AWA standards and practices go here.
In addition to milking our own Animal Welfare Approved ewes, we also support other rural communities by partnering with small family-owned cow and sheep dairies who are helping us to grow. While not all of our dairy partners are AWA certified, we are actively working towards sourcing all of our milk from AWA farms and encouraging other farms to get the AWA certification.
MILK
A traditional cheesemakers’ proverb says “Cow’s milk is for butter, goat’s milk is for drinking, and sheep’s milk is for cheese” and illustrates the high regard for sheep’s milk in the cheesemaking community.
The rich flavors, and unique makeup of sheep’s milk, especially grass-fed sheep’s milk, make it ideal for crafting wonderful cheeses.
The diverse grasses that our sheep eat throughout the year mean our ewes produce milk that is concentrated with a wide array of flavor compounds. This complexity makes for more delightful cheese. In addition, sheep’s milk contains more concentrated milk solids including protein, fat, and calcium, and is a marvelous milk for crafting delicious, nutritious cheeses.
CHEESE
Our quest is to make the very best small-batch, handcrafted sheep and cow’s milk cheeses.
All of our products start with exceptional milk from lovingly-raised animals. As the milk transforms through the seasons, our cheesemakers fine-tune their art to convert this liquid treasure into delicious cheeses. Each batch is a little bit different throughout the year due to the changes in the milk. They can vary in size, shape, and flavor. We celebrate and honor these variations in our cheeses as a reminder of their handcrafted nature and the seasonality of life on the farm.
In addition to our Fresh and Aged sheep’s milk cheeses, we also make a line of delicious cow and sheep milk blended cheeses. Come visit us at our shop in Weston and take a tour of the farm to learn more about our farm practices and taste our cheese!
COMMUNITY
Our challenge is to create an environmentally sustainable business, producing high-quality cheese and yogurt that will make a lasting contribution to the wellbeing of our employees and our community.
We believe it is vitally important to know and value where our food comes from, to understand all that goes into what we eat, and to appreciate the nuances and power of food.
At Green Dirt Farm, we share our knowledge of cheese and cheesemaking through a variety of events including our Farm Table Dinners and Cheese Appreciation Events as well as tours and other experiences. Please visit our events page for more information.
It goes without saying that our community is vital to the work we do at Green Dirt Farm. Our community is our partner in our quest to make the best cheese. You have the right to know everything about how your food is prepared. We welcome your feedback about the farm and our products. If you have any questions or comments, thoughts or criticisms, please contact us at 816-386-2156 or send us an email at info@greendirtfarm.com.
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