Salted Butter

Hi David, Our co-op requires its farmers to practice pasture-based production, meaning  that a significant portion of our cows' diets comes from pasture. We recognize that cows are ruminant animals whose stomachs are designed to eat grass and forage plants. Since 1995 we have had a pasture policy with minimum requirements (which we fought hard to have included in the national organic standards) of 120 days of pasture each year, with grazing supplying a minimum of 30% of total diet (average dry matter intake). However, many of our farmers are able to provide much more of their cows diet from grazing.

The amount of time our animals spend on pasture, and how much of the diet that pasture provides, varies by time of year, weather, the feeding program of the individual farmer and the regional location of the farm. Many of our farmers are in northern areas of the country where pasture is available for approximately half the year, but some of our farmers in the West are able to graze year-round. Dry pasture forage (ie, hay) is also a dietary staple through the winter months on many farms.

The amount of land/pasture a farmer has available for grazing is also a factor. Good pasture management practices can allow a farmer to maximize grazing opportunity for the cows. The co-op offers workshops and other resources for farmers to learn best management practices to keep their pastures growing.