Beecher's Handmade Cheese - Milk Supplies

Milk Supplies

After their initial founding with one milk supplier, Beecher's production system has had to expand several times to include more suppliers. As of 2006, Beecher's was in the process of purchasing their own farms in Eastern Washington for additional milk production, which will also give them full control over their entire product's creation. The principal milk supplier is Green Acres Farm in Duvall, Washington, using only hormone-free and antibiotic-free milk. When consistent milk production first became a problem, Beecher's purchased a herd of 200 cows. The entire dairy herd at Green Acres Farm is owned by Beecher's, who leases them back to the farm. For the New York production, all Holstein and Jersey milk come directly from Dutch Hollow Farms in upstate New York.

To ensure a standardized flavor for the finished cheeses, and due to there being insufficient space in their facilities for milk separating systems, Sinko said he "went and standardized the herd." Their initial milk from Holstein cows was sweet, but lacked the fatty content and nuttiness of Jersey cow milk that was part of the product they wanted to create. They were able to eventually balance the two to their satisfaction. Dammeier has described the blend of Holstein and Jersey milk as a "50–50 mix". From each farm, all the milk supplied to Beecher's is from the same herd, to ensure that the flavor of each batch of milk they receive is consistent (based on the herd's diet and environment).

At times, Beecher's has encountered challenges in maintaining this uniform standard. For example, when flooding affected one farm, the cows there produced enzymes in their milk that helped their calves to fight off bacteria, but changed the flavor of the milk.