Farm BasicsUpdated a year ago

What is the average size of your farms?

Every farm in our co-operative is a family farm, and herd sizes are very small compared to other parts of the country. Our average member milks about 200 cows, and even our largest farms are family operations with several generations working on the farm. Please feel free to take a virtual tour of some of these farms on our website at “farm tour.”

What kind of cows do your farmers milk?

Our family farms are very diverse in their size and shape. independently managed. This results in a variety of cow breeds; however, much of our milk comes from a mix of Jerseys and Holsteins.

What do Cabot cows eat?

The main source of sustenance for the cows in our co-operative is corn silage, grass silage, pasture, and dried hay (all of these are usually grown on the farm or locally), or a combination of these types of feed. Many of our farmer-owners work with dairy nutrition experts and will supplement the feed with high-energy pellet grain or other commodities if needed to properly balance the cows’ diet. The goal is to give the cows plenty of nutritious food so that they stay healthy and provide good quality milk.

What does Cabot do to ensure the proper treatment of its farmers' herds?

Our co-operative goes to great lengths to ensure the safety, health, and happiness of our cattle. All of the members on our Board of Directors are active dairy farmers. Our farmers all rely on each other to provide high quality, safe milk that is in turn converted to various world class cheeses and other dairy products, and they know you can only achieve top notch results if your cattle are healthy and happy.

What exactly do we do? We are enrolled in a program called FARM, Farmers Assuring Responsible Management, whose goal is to demonstrate and verify that milk producers are committed to the highest standards in animal care. As part of this program our seventeen field representatives, who routinely make unannounced visits to our farms, are trained to ensure that there is no mistreatment of any animals on our farms.

Do your farmers give their cows artificial growth hormones?

All of our member farms have pledged not to use artificial growth hormones. ALL Cabot products are made with milk from cows not treated with rBST. 

*By law we must note: The FDA has stated that there is no significant difference between milk from rBST-treated and untreated cows.