Raw milk for human consumption that has not been pasteurized is a controversial product. Unpasteurized milk may contain pathogens that can lead to serious illness. Nonetheless, a study led by researchers Özlem Altıok and Michael Bell of the UW-Madison Department of Community and Environmental Sociology found that customers cite improving their health among the top reasons for drinking raw milk. A growing number of consumers feel that pasteurization robs milk of some of its nutritional and health benefits. [...more]

In the mid 1980s, a pair of wheat producers, Karl Kupers and Fred Fleming, became convinced that the conventional dryland wheat farming they were practicing was not sustainable in the Palouse region of eastern Washington. They set out to tackle both the agro-ecological challenge of sustainability by reversing soil erosion and soil degradation, and the economic challenge of remaining financially viable without federal commodity subsidies. [...more]

Robust local and regional food systems offer social, environmental and economic benefits. Increasingly, wholesale buyers are demanding locally grown food and growers are looking for new regional markets. To develop informed business development strategies for Wisconsin farmers and other supply chain start-ups, the UW-Madison Center for Integrated Agricultural Systems (CIAS) and UW-Extension Agricultural Innovation Center studied and documented eleven models of regional food aggregation and distribution. [...more]

There is growing consumer interest in dairy products from grass-fed cows. Consumers are increasingly aware of the environmental, health and taste benefits of eating dairy and other animal products from livestock fed using managed grazing. If this interest translates into demand, it may open new value-added markets for farmers who use managed grazing. [...more]

Case studies of four innovative enterprises—Country Natural Beef, CROPP/Organic Valley, Shepherd’s Grain and Red Tomato—offer models of how mid-sized farms and ranches can prosper through producing and selling high-quality, differentiated food products into a variety of markets. [...more]

It can be tough to make a living from commodity crops, but Wisconsin farmers may be in an ideal position to reap profits from value-added food processing. A wide variety of agricultural products are raised in Wisconsin. And many people living in nearby large urban centers are willing to pay more for unique and sustainably [...] [...more]

Farmers wishing to capitalize on the trend of increased consumption of white meat can consider raising chickens. But for many, a conventional commercial chicken operation’s high capital investment, large scale, and limited market access are unsuitable. Enter the pastured poultry model, where growing chickens are kept in large, floorless pens that are moved across pasture to [...] [...more]