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Why spring grass milk is the most healthy, creamy, yellow, and delicious.

written by

Marie Reedell

posted on

April 29, 2025

spring-grass.jpg

Ahhhh, spring grass fed milk. It’s just the best milk of the entire year. 

You can see that it’s yellower and creamier. You can taste its full flavor and earthiness. In your gut, you just know that this milk is good for you. It’s simply the best.

With modern testing, we can quantify that we’re not crazy for believing this or feeling this within our bodies. It’s scientifically true. Spring grass fed milk is the healthiest milk.

Let’s explore.

Spring milk is creamiest because it has high butterfat.

Interestingly, it seems that seasonal temperatures have an effect on butterfat. Butterfat is typically lowest in July and August and highest in January. It’s still high in spring. 

If you take into account the breed of the cow, our milk is hands down the creamiest around. Our herd is 80% Jersey and 80% Jersey crosses. Jersey cows produce the highest butterfat.

Whole milk in the store is a steady 3.5% (regardless of the season). On our farm, our full fat grass fed spring milk has 5%+ butterfat. Since all of our milk is non-homogenized, you can see that hefty creamline when you let the jug settle.

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Spring milk is tastiest because of the diversity of the pasture and the high fat content.

There are 12+ species of plants growing in our pasture. Since the flavor of the plants come through in milk, this diversity of forage leads to a diversity of flavor in spring milk. Our well kept pastures produce spring milk that’s earthy and grassy tasting. 

A word of warning is that the farmer needs to be careful of strong tasting plants like onion grass or sneezeweed growing in the pasture. If cows eat those, an unpleasant bitter taste can be transferred to the milk.

Spring milk is the yellowest because of the beta-carotene in spring grass. 

Beta-carotene is a naturally growing plant pigment. It’s what gives many fruits and vegetables a yellow or orange color. It occurs naturally in many pasture grasses and legumes (even though most of these are green rather than orange or yellow).

A sign of high beta-carotene is yellow fat. Since our milk and butter is yellowest in the spring, we know that it has a high beta-carotene content from the fresh spring pasture. 

Grass fed milk in the spring is the healthiest milk, because the cows are eating the best quality feed. Here are 3 specific nutritional boosts in spring milk:

Beta-Carotene

It’s no secret that beta-carotene levels in spring milk are highest. As stated above, we can see it in the yellow color of the milk and butterfat. Here’s a chart that clearly shows the difference. 

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Beta-carotene is a carotenoid that your body converts into vitamin A. Since too much vitamin A can be toxic, consuming beta-carotene is a safer option compared to taking a Vitamin A supplement. Your body will convert beta-carotene to vitamin A on demand and as needed, avoiding any potential vitamin A toxicity.

Beta-carotene can:

  • Prevent the onset of eye disease and help promote good eye health;
  • Increase our immune health by reducing oxidative stress in the body;
  • Improve skin health and appearance;
  • Help with proper lung health and function; and
  • Increase cognitive function and memory.

Vitamin E (α-tocopherol)

One study looking at levels of α-tocopherol (AKA Vitamin E) by season found that grass milk in the spring had the highest levels. Per gram of milk fat, α-tocopherol was 13.3 - 18.0 μg in spring, 12.6 - 13.9 μg in summer, and 10.6 - 11.7 μg in fall.

Another study didn’t look specifically at Jersey cows, but we can see that among Brown Swiss and Holstein cows, Vitamin A was clearly highest (by a significant amount) in the spring. 

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Vitamin E is a fat-soluble antioxidant that can:

  • Protect cell constituents from the damaging effects of free radicals that, if unchecked, might contribute to cancer development;
  • Improve overall immune function;
  • Prevent or delay coronary heart disease;
  • Prevent or treat eye disorders; and
  • Optimize brain function.

CLA (conjugated linoleic acid)

Studies have shown that there is an eight-to-ten fold variation in CLA concentrations in milk. The variation comes from what the cows are eating and how mature the forage is.

When a cow eats pasture, you can see a 2-4 fold increase in CLAs. The more pasture a cow eats, the higher the CLAs in their milk. And, the less mature the forage, the higher the CLAs. This is why our cows eating 100% immature pasture in the spring produce milk with the highest levels of CLAs.

Conjugated linoleic acid is the only fatty acid shown unequivocally to inhibit carcinogenesis in experimental animals. CLA can reduce new tumor growth and destroy existing tumor cells. CLA has killed existing cancer cells in colon, ovarian and prostate carcinoma, leukemia, melanoma, and breast tumors. CLA-enriched butter inhibited a rat mammary tumor yield by 53%

Beyond cancer, CLA has many other benefits, too:

  • Reduced plaque build-up in the blood (atherosclerosis)
  • Enhanced immune system
  • Prevention and treatment of diabetes
  • Weight reduction; reduced body fat and increase body protein
  • Enhanced bone formation

Eating fresh biodiverse pastures is also healthiest for our cows. They can self-select their diet and use food as medicine.

When cows (or any animal) eat biodiverse pasture, it may seem like they’re eating whatever they can find. But, this isn’t true. They are choosing what to eat and what not to eat, like you do at a salad bar. Our biodiverse pastures have 12+ different types of plants growing at any time.

Research shows that herbivores self-select their diet and choose antimicrobial, antiparasitic, or antifungal plants if they are suffering from a disease or feel they need to prevent this. Wow!

For example, a study in New Zealand found that eating tannin-containing legumes can prevent and treat worms in cows (seeds from our alfalfa plants are high in tannins). Larvae have a hard time growing in the host, adult worms excrete fewer eggs, and the eggs that are laid are typically impaired. 

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Sources

  1. Grazing increases the unsaturated fatty acid concentration of milk from grass-fed cows: A review of the contributing factors, challenges and future perspectives
  2. Phytochemicals in animal health: diet selection and trade-offs between costs and benefits
  3. Effect of Sicilian pasture feeding management on content of α-tocopherol and β-carotene in cow milk
  4. Grass-fed cows produce healthier milk
  5. Conjugated Linoleic Acid (CLA) in Animal Production and Human Health
  6. Conjugated Linoleic Acid and Cancer in Humans-Is there a Role or not? A Review of the Scientific Evidence
  7. THE INFLUENCE OF ENVIRONMENTAL TEMPERA- TURE ON THE PERCENTAGE OF BUTTER FAT IN COW'S MILK* 
  8. Vitamin E
  9. Have You Heard Of Beta-carotene? Here Are The Top 5 Benefits

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Warning: Fat Holds Toxins. Carnivore and keto folks should watch out.

Aaron, myself, and a couple other team members went to Tennessee to participate in Meatstock 2025 last weekend. It's a carnivore/keto party in the Smoky Mountains. Boy, we learned a lot and met a lot of wonderful people, both people who healed through food as well as doctors and experts that help people heal.  One person we had the pleasure of meeting was the amazing Dr. Kiltz. He's a carnivore. He's also a doctor who specializes in fertility. And can you guess how he helps many of his patients? Yup, through food. He's a big supporter of the carnivore and keto diets. He suggests getting 70-80% of your calories from fat, 15-30% from protein, and 0-10% from carbs. Dr. Kiltz spoke at a dinner we attended. And something he said shocked us -- "Don't worry about grass fed, regenerative, and all that natural stuff. It's the fact that you're eating fat that matters." 😳 Woah woah woah. Hold up a sec. We, of course, had a conversation with Dr. Kiltz about this.  I mean, why are people having health issues in the first place? Sure, some of it could be genetics. Some of it's definitely environmental. But, a lot of it is likely the food we're eating. It's processed food laden with seed oils and carbs and sugar and yucky additives... but also the farming practices that result in toxic stuff hidden in plain old ingredients. Dr. Kiltz agreed and elaborated on his statement. What he's saying is that, if you're eating a standard American diet, the biggest and fastest impact you can make comes from altering your diet on a macro level - fat, protein, and carbs. But the granular stuff you can't see or count matters too, especially once you're making progress. OK, I get it. But then I thought some more... Toxins accumulate in the fat. So, if you eat animal-based foods (especially the fattier ones) and are looking to limit (or eliminate) that awful toxic stuff, farming practices matter. Like a lot! So, unsurprisingly, I went into research mode. Here's what I learned. Which toxins accumulate in fat and why? Not all toxins accumulate in fat. Some are stored in bone, muscle, organs, etc. But, there are certain toxins that a body stores specifically in fat. They include: Dioxins and furans (PCDDs/PCDFs) - These are persistent pollutants, resistant to breakdown, that are generally creating by burning things like plastic and chemicals and garbage. They can also be created as byproducts of industrial processes.PCBs - That's short for polychlorinated biphenyls, which are synthetic chemicals that were used to make various consumer products, from paint to glues to lubricants to coolants to batteries. They were banned in 1979, but because of their inability to breakdown, they remain as toxins in our environment.Pesticides & Herbicides - This includes previously banned pesticides (like DDT) that are still present in our environment. This also includes pesticides used today, like organochlorine and organophosphate pesticides. Certain Toxic Heavy Metals - Mercury, lead, cadmium, and aluminum are known for accumulating in fat. The reason the above toxins collect specifically fat (AKA adipose tissue) is because they are lipophilic. Liophilic is when a substance is "fat loving" and can bond with or dissolve in fat.  Other toxins are hydrophilic, meaning they are "water loving" and can bond with and dissolve in water. These include bentazone, glyphosate, imidacloprid, flouride, and arsenic. They do not accumulate in fat. What can an overload of toxins do to your body? I like to think about toxic overload like a cup. Our bodies can process a little of it. But, when the cup is overfilled with stuff like pesticides, toxic heavy metals, mold, carcinogens, etc, that's when problems happen.  Our bodies are pretty good at handling stress. That's why toxic overload can be confusing. It may take a long time - months, years, or decades - for the problem to arise. Then, once the problem happens, it's hard to pinpoint the cause. And then, healing time is often lengthy (and sometimes the damage can't completely be undone).  When it comes to toxins, the response really depends on the body. The list of issues that can arise is exhaustive. They include fatigue, headaches, digestive problems and leaky gut, brain fog, anxiety and depression, increased risk of cancer, cardiovascular disease, hormone imbalance, mast cell overreaction, histamine responses, bloating and inflammation, trouble sleeping, skin conditions, liver damage, obesity, and more. Where can toxins in animal-based foods come from? When it comes to farming, there are few places that toxins can be introduced to animals. This can be from toxins resistant to breaking down from decades ago or toxins being used or produced today. This can be on the actual farms or in the facilities that prepare food for sale: Air: Toxins can vaporize and float in the air. Animals can breathe it in or it can settle on top of soil or water. Water: This is especially true with city water, which often has chemicals added to it or may run through old pipes. But, as we all know, water pollution varies from area to area.Soil: This can come from the local area or a non-farming activity that happened on the land previously. This can also be from past farming practices or current ones. Slaughter and butchering: Did you know an antimicrobial is required by the USDA when processing meat? Processors can choose harsh chemicals like bleach or opt for more natural ones like citric or lactic acids or vinegar.Recipes: Think beef jerky or lunchmeat. They have ingredients. First off, anything that's less than 1% doesn't need to be listed on the package. And then, of course, there's the hidden stuff depending on the quality of the ingredient.Packaging: Even what our food comes in can leach chemicals into our food. I mean, think about microplastics in bottled water! When toxins enter your food, you can't see them. You can't taste them. You can't smell them. This is why knowing more about how your food is produced is important. How can farming practices decrease the levels of toxins? Well, there are bunch of ways toxins can get into food from farming. Here are some ways that farms can decrease toxins in the final food: Choose A Clean Location: If a farm is located right next to or downstream from a factory or city, toxin levels will likely increase. Farms should ideally be far from cities or factories. Have Clean Water: If contamination is persistent in your area, you'll likely know it. And, you can always test the water, too.Improve Soil Health With Regenerative Farming: When soil is dead and unhealthy, toxins break down at their normal speed. But, with regenerative farming that creates robust microbiology, toxins can break down faster.Fertilize Naturally: There are plenty of chemical fertilizers out there. But, compost and manure from natural chemical-free sources are just as good… if not better.Limit, Eliminate, Be Considerate With Pesticide And Herbicide Use: A grand majority of farms still use pesticides and herbicides regularly. Yeesh. Even the organic ones can contain yucky stuff. With things like fruit, it's kinda necessary to some extent. But, especially with pasture raised animals, they're simply not needed (even though some farms still choose it).Choose Naturally Formulated Feed: This is the idea of the ingredients in the ingredients. You can have the most pristine land, air, and water, raising beef. But, if you feed them GMO corn sprayed with glyphosate and grown in contaminated soil... well... those toxins are introduced. Farms can make sure they're feed ingredients are pure and the sources the ingredients come from are chemical-free.Eliminate Vaccines: Yup, vaccines contain toxins. And especially when injected, they can harbor themselves in fat. Aluminum is a common ingredient in vaccines. And, did you know that animal vaccines can contain Thimerosal (AKA mercury)? That's been banned in human vaccines. When animals are raised outdoors and to be naturally happy and healthy, vaccines aren't necessary.Be Mindful With Anyone Who Processes Your Food: This can be a challenge, especially if you're in an area with more conventional farms. Farms can ask the hard questions and ask for changes like what antimicrobials are used (apple cider vinegar is allowed by the USDA), what the ingredients are, and where the ingredients are sourced from. At Miller's Bio Farm, we try to reduce your toxic intake as much as possible. Here's a few notable things we do (among the many): All of our small farms are 60+ miles from any major city.Our pastures are never sprayed with pesticides or herbicides. We love the biodiversity!Our pastures are fertilized with manure and more manure!Our farms that raise our animals regenerate their soil year after year. The idea is to improve the quality of the soil, and that includes the microbes that can help break down toxins.Clean well water is used for the animals to drink and for processing our meat and all of our products. Our beef, pork, and lamb are washed with organic apple cider vinegar. Our chicken is air chilled. Our turkey is washed with water and only water.None of our animals are fed corn or soy. And, our feed is chemical-free.Our farmers do not vaccinate their animals. Our chicken and turkey and lamb is 100% vaccine free. The only way a vaccine could be given to a cow or pig is if the animal was bought in and previously vaccinated. We make sure that no animal has received an mRNA vaccine. None of our products have yucky stuff like nitrates/nitrites, additives, fillers, etc. It's simple natural food. We always vet our processors before working with them to make sure they're up to our natural standards. We'd love to supply you with clean foods and hope you join the movement! Do you eat a lot of fat? Whether you do or not, what toxins make you most worried? I'd love to hear from you. Comment below or contact us 😊 ----- References: Carnivore Diet Macros and How to Achieve ThemAdipose Tissue as a Site of Toxin Accumulation Pesticide residues in animal-derived food: Current state and perspectives Impact of pesticide exposure on adipose tissue development and function10 Powerful Nutrients Found Only in Meat

Does varying yolk color affect the flavor of honest eggs?

As you know, we don't add any color to our feed. This is why our pastured corn & soy free eggs are called "honest yolk eggs". "Color" includes unnatural stuff like dyes as well as natural stuff like marigold and paprika. Nearly all egg farmers nowadays do this... even the natural ones. Why? People demand consistent color yolks, thinking it means a certain quality. Little do most know, yolk color is superficial now. At Miller's, we know this for a fact. Curiosity made us to send our eggs for testing, and there was zero nutritional difference in our orange vs yellow yolk eggs. What mattered most was the farming practices and quality of the feed, and our eggs came out on top for most tests. We really love having varying yolk color. It's an indicator of what the birds are eating.  It tells our farmers how their pasture is doing. If the plants are too mature, not diverse enough, it's too wet or dry, or if chickens aren't eating the pasture, we'll see that with the yolk color! Now, we've had an array of responses since we removed the color from our feed. One baffling one is --- the light colored yolks don't taste as good as the dark colored yolks. Is this true? I mean, removing the color is only a superficial change. It shouldn't affect the flavor. Well, we needed to find out. So... we did a blind tasting on the farm a few weeks ago. Here's what that looked like: The results? The whole team agreed -- all eggs tasted the same! The biggest factor affecting egg flavor was the yolk to white ratio. The more yolk, the more flavor.  It's spring, and our hens are out on pasture 100% of the time. An egg develops for about 6 weeks inside a chicken, so it takes some time. But... you should start to see darker yolks now. Have you noticed a change in yolk color? Have you noticed a flavor change? Would you prefer consistent colored yolks or honest yolks? I'd love to hear from you. Comment below or contact us 😊 PS: The egg shortage is 100% over, and we have plenty of eggs now!! That means egg bundles are back!