You are not alone. You belong. Your choice is the right choice.

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posted on

May 15, 2021

Miller’s Bio Farm hosted Farm Day last weekend. It was a wonderful day filled with eating excellent healthy food, connecting with like minded families, and getting to know the farm and farm staff and animals better.

Although Farm Day was overwhelmingly positive, I had a few too many conversations with (non-Amish) people about feeling displaced, alone, and ostracized. What has our world come to!?

Holistic or alternative healthcare, vaccine choice, dietary restrictions, education paths, parenting decisions, mask wearing, and more are all hot button topics right now. And, depending on your stance, many are finding themselves exiled from family and friends and “the system” and insecure and anxious about the future.

I absolutely understand the struggle. I’ve personally dealt with many of the above issues with friends, family, and strangers. And, farmer Aaron and his Amish community certainly have, too.

I’d just like to say - THIS IS NOT OK! Our American culture has become so polarized, in the past year especially, with the mainstream claiming the only truth.

Wasn’t America founded on the belief that all people are created equal? Aren’t fundamental rights supposed to be liberty, free speech, and freedom of religion/belief?

I know that decisions, especially decisions that go against the grain, are not made on a whim. They are made with research and conviction. They are educated decisions.

Wherever you are on your food or holistic journey, your choice is the right choice. You belong at Miller’s Bio Farm. We accept you for who you are. You are not alone.

The Miller’s team is fighting for the right to choose and what we believe in every day. Whether in regard to access to raw dairy, real food made without synthetic ingredients, regenerative agriculture/healthcare, holistic health choices, or sustainable packaging, we are right here with you. Spreading knowledge and making change, whether big or small, every day.

As we reopen America, I urge us all to open up to each other. Open up to different viewpoints. Open up to different ways of being. Open up to new knowledge. Don’t stop learning. Let’s connect. Let’s inspire healthy generations together.

Have you been struggling lately? If so, please stand strong. And, feel free to share… if you so choose.

Opinion

Ugh greenwashed labels. What does it take to get ___ on a label anyway?

Not a fan of the confusing, greenwashed labels in store? Yea, me too! And it's especially real for me, because I'm responsible for getting our labels approved with the "powers that be". Here's a little story with a big inside scoop... I made new labels for our bone broth a little while ago. It didn't go as smoothly as planned. Why? I put the little icons about our farming practices on them. They look like this: Yup, despite being 100% accurate and true, they were denied!! We're not allowed to put those statements on our food labels. So, I asked the USDA guy, "What would it take to get those claims on the labels, anyway?" The answer was kinda shocking. First off, there's some guidance on wording. Silly technicalities in my opinion. For example, you can't use the term "No Spray" but you can say "Produced without the use of synthetic pesticides." Or another example is that you can't say "No Routine Antibiotics or Vaccines" but you can say "Raised without routine use of antibiotics or vaccines." Second, the processor needs to update their documents to provide traceability. In other words, they need to document how they make sure the bones for our bone broth don't get mixed up with bones from other farms. I mean, this is pretty simple, especially with small batch foods like ours. But the documentation needs to be meticulous. Drafting it in government-approved language can be time consuming and/or costly. And lastly, once you get the wording and process right, you need proof. This was the real shocker for me: Want to know what proof would suffice for all the claims above? A 2-3 sentence affidavit (AKA a super short letter) signed by all farmers that supply us. That's it!? This lead me to a bunch of questions: What if a company submits a letter from one farmer but actually has other farmers that supply them, too? What if a company changes farmers? Will they submit new letters?What if a company's farmers change their practices in the future? Will they immediately update their labels?Are the "powers that be" checking on this? Is anyone checking on this?Is this why most farms and food facilities don't allow outside people coming in? It seems to me that, if a business isn't doing what the label says, the only way to find out is via a whistleblower. And the only way to make them stop is to take them to court. You know, like what's happening with Vital Farms and their pasture raised egg claim right now. It seems to me that, all that good natural stuff on labels - grass fed, pasture raised, antibiotic free, etc - doesn't mean it's true. Certifications are a little better, but the same kinda thing can be said about those, too. This is why, at Miller's, we choose to NOT sell in stores. No wholesale for us. In fact, we don't even have an on farm store. We only sell directly to our customers via our website. And, we choose to only get certified for what's required. This way, we can make our own natural standards. And, we can provide you will all the info and proof you need. Descriptions, photos, blog posts, test results, and more. So, what do you think? Should we do the affidavit thing to get claims on our bone broth labels? What proof do you need to feel confident in your food choices? I'd love to hear from you. Comment below (no account required - just start typing) or contact us 😊

Should I choose animal rennet or vegetable rennet in my natural cheese?

Let’s take a look at what rennet is and why it’s used in cheesemaking, compare the different types of animal and vegetable rennets, check out the labeling requirements for rennet, and consider the potential health consequences. Keeping all this in mind, Miller’s Bio Farm aims to produce the most nutrient-dense, natural, A2/A2 cheese we can and gives you all the info you need to make the choice that’s best for your body!

Is yolk color is no longer a great indicator of the egg's nutrition?

It used to be true that, if your egg yolks were darker in color, then the better the egg's nutrition. Conscious consumers of the past would look for that deep orange yolk and stray away from lighter yellow yolks. It's sad, but this simply isn't the case anymore. Here's why you can't trust cheap store-bought eggs with orange yolks and need to know your farmer instead.

You are not alone. You belong. Your choice is the right choice.

More from the blog

Ugh greenwashed labels. What does it take to get ___ on a label anyway?

Should I choose animal rennet or vegetable rennet in my natural cheese?

Is yolk color is no longer a great indicator of the egg's nutrition?

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