A2 vs. A2/A2 milk. Yea, we switched. Why? What's the difference?

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April 29, 2022

Over a year ago, Miller’s Bio Farm got a cease and desist letter from a company that will remain unnamed. It said that we needed to STOP using the term “A2 Milk”. Why? They have a trademark on the term and using the term constitutes “trademark infringement”.

We wrote a friendly letter back saying that “A2 milk” is a common term, and we shouldn’t have to stop using it. We also explained that the farmer is Amish and does not believe in using courts to resolve issues. We preferred to resolve the issue amicably.

A year of silence went by. Then, we received a second cease and desist letter saying the same thing - Miller’s Bio Farm needs to stop using the term “A2 Milk”.

At this point, farmer Aaron felt we needed to get an attorney involved, so we did.

The attorney wrote a letter arguing (in legalese) that Miller’s using the term “A2 Milk” is a fair use of a descriptive term. The reason we know this is because there are thousands of publications - scientific papers, blog posts, websites, books, etc - that all use the term “A2 Milk” to describe milk containing 100% beta-casein protein.

The unnamed company wrote us back (more quickly this time) but still did not agree. We had two options - take it to court or switch our terminology. For obvious reasons, we chose the latter.

So… from this point forward, we will use the term “A2/A2” to describe our cow dairy (A2/A2 Milk, A2/A2 Yogurt, A2/A2 Butter, etc). To be extra clear, nothing is changing except the product names.

All of our cows will still be genetically tested to verify that they produce milk with 100% A2 beta-casein protein. The ingredients on our dairy products will still note “A2/A2 milk”. We are simply switching the terminology.

In case you’re new to A2/A2 dairy, you can learn more about what A2/A2 milk is and why it might be better for your body here.

And, maybe this is a good thing…

The genetic test results we get for our cows says whether the milk produced is A1/A1, A1/A2, or A2/A2. So it is more scientifically accurate to say “A2/A2 Dairy”.

A1/A1 means that the cow produces milk with 100% A1 beta-casein protein.

A1/A2 means that the cow produces milk with a mix of A1 and A2 beta-casein protein.

A2/A2 means that the cow products milk with 100% A2 beta-casein protein.

What do you think? Do you care if your dairy is labeled “A2” or “A2/A2”? How do situations like this make you feel?

I'd love to hear from you. Comment below (no account required) or contact us.

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Thanks for clean food! Want to send some love to our team?

Happy Thanksgiving! I hope you're having a wonderful Thanksgiving week filled with clean nourishing foods and people you care about 🥰 As I reflect on what I'm thankful for, I was reminded of an email we got last week from a fairly new customer. Here's what it said: ----- "Hi, I've been a customer for a couple of months now, and I wanted to send a quick note of appreciation for your amazing products AND your organization. "I have many food and chemical sensitivities, and it has been a multi-year battle to find food I can actually eat, even with the prevalence of Whole Foods and other organic markets in my area. Everything I've tried from your website has been fantastic, and above all I appreciate your total transparency when it comes to animal feed, production methods, etc. I've learned about all kinds of things I need to watch out for in grocery stores, and I would have considered myself a well-educated consumer! "But beyond that, I'd like to compliment your business model — the website is easy to use, your workflow appears to be incredibly efficient, and I know how much work that takes behind the scenes. "Keep up the great work!" ----- I mean, how wonderful was that!? Reading it made me so happy. I immediately forwarded it along to the team to brighten the day. After all, everyone who works with Miller's Bio Farm has lots of hard work to do to get you your food. This got me thinking... wouldn't it be nice to give to give a little something back to the Miller's team this Thanksgiving? What if we compiled a list of thank you notes to share? You with me? Want to express your thanks? I'm making it as easy as possible. Simply leave a comment below. It could be something in general. It could relate to a certain product that you love. It could be to the farmers. It could be to the packing or customer team. It could be to the driver who delivers your order. Hey, it could even be to our website, which also does a lot of work taking your orders! ⬇️ Comment below ⬇️ Our team would LOVE to hear from you. I'll share every single comment with everyone at Miller's the week after Thanksgiving 😊 *No account required -- start typing for the guest option to appear.

Your gut. Is the perfect synergistic probiotic a pill or fermented food?

*Warning: I'm not a doctor and I don't have any degrees in nutrition. This is my opinion on the topic. Last weekend, Aaron and I went to the Documenting Hope's conference in Orlando. It was for both parents and doctors who are helping kids heal from chronic illnesses... in a holistic way. It's such an important cause that aligns perfectly with our tagline "Inspiring Health Generations". We had a table and loved feeding everyone yummy and pure snacks. I also had the pleasure of attending some of the talks. One of my favorite talks was from Star Edwards MS, RDN/LD titled "Where's Bifido? Missing Bifidobacterium, Impact on Child Health, and Restoration Strategies⁠". It was all about gut health and balance and its affects on the immune system, the brain, and overall wellbeing. One thing that really stuck with me were the warnings about probiotic pills. First off, probiotic pills are super potent. They can completely throw off the balance in your gut. Star advised people to get tested for what's actually in their gut first. This is so you can know which strains are too low or high. Then, you can determine the right probiotic pill to correct any issues. And then, you want to get tested again 6-8 weeks later to make sure those little pills had the desired effect. Second, probiotic pills need to be formulated properly. If they're not, then "probiotic" strains can compete with each other and cancel each other out. Then, they're not doing you any good at all. Wow! This got me thinking about balance in nature and in living things and therefore our gut and our food. It made me wonder -- Would fermented food naturally be in balance? Would eating fermented foods be better than taking probiotic pills? After all, they're living things and we're living things. So of course I did some research. And I mean there are A LOT of studies on probiotics and gut health. But, it seems that science is conflicted when it comes to probiotics. Here are a few reasons why: It's the same story as any FDA-approved product. The companies do the studies (and lots of them) that prove their product is superior. They set the parameters and goals to achieve the desired result. It's hard to determine which studies are unbiased.The limits for whether something is considered "probiotic" or not is set by the FDA. And the bar is set for probiotic pills that seek approval. The limits are so high that, by those standards, fermented foods don't meet the regulatory criteria to be considered "probiotic".Gut health is a holistic approach to health, which is hard to prove with modern science. Every body is different and will react differently. Every person has a different diet, sleep habits, exercise routine, etc. There are too many variables to conclude definitive health outcomes based on probiotics in the gut alone. Although science in conflicted on which kinds of probiotics are best and the precise benefits of each, there are a couple things there is scientific consensus on: Eating probiotics (whether in pill or food form) alters the microbiology of your gut.The balance of gut microbiology directly relates to your health and wellbeing. So... back to the main topic. Are fermented foods more synergistic than probiotic pills? Since science is kinda out on this one, I think we need to rely on our gut instinct (pun intended) to make the best choice for ourselves. So I'll tell you my perspective. I personally believe in a more ancestral way of eating. How about you? 200 years ago everyone ate pure food (without weird chemicals or additives). Everyone cooked. The soil was packed with nutrients and regenerated by nature. And... people fermented food. If not eaten immediately, many foods will ferment naturally. It's why we have cheese, kefir, yogurt, salami, sourdough bread, kombucha, etc. Humans found that they could still eat it... and it tasted pretty yummy too. And maybe most importantly it helped preserve food over winters and for travel. But... fermented foods were only considered edible if they tasted good. If the microbiology in a fermented food is out of whack, it just doesn't taste good. That's when bad molds and other weird stuff grows. That's when our body's response is to spit it out! In other words, fermented foods need to be in balance microscopically. And they need to align with our taste buds. So, in the most natural and ancestral way, I believe that fermented foods that you think are yummy must be the most synergistic way to boost and balance your gut microbiology. How is your gut health? Do you do anything in particular to help keep your gut in balance? Have you noticed any changes after working on your gut? I'd love to hear from you. Comment below ⬇️

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So, you have a beautiful pasture-raised soy and corn free turkey in your freezer. Now what? Here are some tips to help you answer important pre-Thanksgiving questions: When do I need to thaw my turkey? To brine or not to brine? What will I season the turkey with? Should I stuff the turkey? Will I do a regular roast or slow roast? When does it need to go in the oven?

A2 vs. A2/A2 milk. Yea, we switched. Why? What's the difference?

Over a year ago, Miller’s Bio Farm got a cease and desist letter from a company that will remain unnamed. It said that we needed to STOP using the term “A2 Milk”. Why? They have a trademark on the term and using the term constitutes “trademark infringement”.

So… from this point forward, we will use the term “A2/A2” to describe our cow dairy (A2/A2 Milk, A2/A2 Yogurt, A2/A2 Butter, etc). To be extra clear, nothing is changing except the product names.

The genetic test results we get for our cows says whether the milk produced is A1/A1, A1/A2, or A2/A2. So it is more scientifically accurate to say “A2/A2 Dairy”.

What do you think? Do you care if your dairy is labeled “A2” or “A2/A2”? How do situations like this make you feel?

More from the blog

Thanks for clean food! Want to send some love to our team?

Your gut. Is the perfect synergistic probiotic a pill or fermented food?

Tips on how to thaw, prep, and cook your pastured Thanksgiving turkey.

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Miller's Bio Farm, 523 Valley Road, Quarryville, PA 17566