calves , which are considered unsuitable for beef production when they are full-grown . The calves are crated and immobilized for several months to inhibit muscle development for more tender cuts of meat , though veal crates have been banned as unethical confinement by several states , including California , which passed its ban in 2008 under Proposition 2 that took effect in 2015 .
Long Dream Farm set out to prove that dairy products could be produced economically and ethically , placing animals ’ rights , natural behaviors and well-being above production . It blends traditional practices of small dairies when they were cornerstones of rural communities with innovative practices , including detaching the dairy from the meat industry , preserving familial herds on the farm , providing lifelong care for animals in food production and supporting stewardship of the land .
Ninety acres of the 700-acre property are devoted to the working farm , where generations of cows spend their days together grazing irrigated , rolling pastures and resting under the shade of mature oak trees . Calves nurse until they naturally wean , and bulls are kept together in their own family group . Of roughly 200 cattle , about 60 are milking cows . Only 25-30 are milked at one time , on average , in the morning ( with several days off ), and they ’ re bred naturally every 2-3 years . The animals at Long Dream Farm will live out their lives on the farm ’ s permanent sanctuary .
But the economics of a slaughter-free dairy are a work in progress . “ That ’ s why we call it an experiment , because we ’ re trying to discover how to do this ,” says Abrahams . “ It ’ s not as economically successful as we might like , but we mainly want to prove that it ( is ) possible to do it .”
Long Dream Farm prices its products — all produced on-site — at what it considers to be comparable to similar products at Whole Foods Market produced by methods that don ’ t use their practices . For example , 9-11 ounces of halloumi-style cheese sells for $ 9.50 , 8 ounces of butter is $ 8.25 , a quart of Greek-style yogurt is $ 9 and 14 ounces of ice cream is $ 8.25 in the farm ’ s online store . “ For what they ’ re doing , their prices are very , very fair ,” says Susie Sutphin ,
Long Dream Farm ’ s products are priced competitively with similar products from Whole Foods Market .
“ That ’ s why we call it an experiment , because we ’ re trying to discover how to do this . It ’ s not as economically successful as we might like , but we mainly want to prove that it ( is ) possible to do it .”
Andrew Abrahams , cofounder and co-owner , Long Dream Farm
founder and director of Tahoe Food Hub , a nonprofit in Truckee that connects local farmers with local markets and has sold Long Dream Farm products for the past four years . It has seen a steady increase in sales of the farm ’ s products . “ People think if a product ’ s organic and pasture raised , that ’ s as good as it gets ,” says Sutphin . “ They don ’ t realize it can be even better than that . That ’ s why what Long Dream Farm is doing is so revolutionary .”
While the farm ’ s production cycles are dependent on demand and other factors , such as what the cows are eating , Abrahams says if they put all production into a single product , they could produce roughly 600 pounds of yogurt , 300 pounds of cheese or 100 pounds of butter a week . The milk cows at Long Dream Farm each produce about 6,000-10,000 pounds of milk annually to produce dairy products . That ’ s within the range of what commercial dairy cows produced 50 years ago . According to the U . S . Department of Agriculture , the average dairy cow in the U . S . produced 9,751 pounds of milk in 1970 . That average shot up to 23,391 pounds of milk per cow in 2019 .
Nearly 30 percent of Long Dream Farm ’ s products are donated , primarily to Auburn Interfaith Food Closet . The remaining products are sold to the
May 2021 | comstocksmag . com 27