Our first experience with raw dairy was really an attempt to help ease Ty's digestive 'issues' (to put it delicately). As a baby, he ate a little food by mouth, but also drank a lot of Carnation Instant Breakfast and it had constipating effect on him.
A woman in my neighborhood had recently started buying raw (non pasteurized/non homogenized) dairy from Jerry's Dairy in a town at the south end of our valley, and asked if she could pick some up for us. We tried it and within a few days Ty was having much less difficulty with his bowels - we were sold. Later we moved to a different part of the state and the only thing available was fresh goat's milk. We used it for about a year, but I have to admit Blaine and I never used it - the taste was too much. One time it came in a jar that had once held pickles - somehow dill pickles and milk just don't go together. But it seemed to be easier on Ty to use it.
When we moved again, neither option was available and we went back to using store bought milk. We moved back to this valley and 5 years later I discovered that raw dairy was once again available. We are just now sticking our toes back in the 'raw' pool. It takes a little getting used to - there is so much more flavor than our taste buds are accustomed to having.
I have been skimming the cream (I'll post later on a really easy way to do it) to make butter and using the milk to make cheese, whey, kefir smoothies (definitely grows on you), yogurt, etc. As an aside - did you know that the grated cheese you buy in the store is packed with powdered plastic to prevent it from sticking together?
Raw dairy is an investment; expect to pay about double what you would pay for whole milk from the store. Soy milk is only slightly less expensive than raw. Example of prices for one gallon from our area: Whole milk $3.00-3.50, Soy milk $5.00, Raw milk $6.00.
At this point, I think organic soy and raw dairy are definitely better for you than the stuff you buy in the store. But probably the best thing for everyone involved (the cows included) is to cut your consumption of milk products.
