Joe shares the story of how a group of farmers took matters into their own hands when the local co-op abandoned the organic market — and why practices like low-temp pasteurization and non-homogenization are helping differentiate their “almost raw” dairy offerings.
We also discuss the challenging questions — how regenerative dairy can thrive and scale in a landscape dominated by consolidation, consumer confusion, and razor-thin margins. And Joe gives a heartfelt case for why organic and regenerative matters more than ever — to the land, to the farmer, and to the person drinking the milk.
Episode Highlights:
🌱 Kalona was born to save organic dairy farms that got left behind
🚚 Their Iowa-based ecosystem includes 19 different entities
📍 Buying from small family farms, many with just 35–40 cows
🌾 Leveraging Land to Market certification for agronomic improvement
🥄 “Almost Raw” milk via low-temp pasteurization & non-homogenization
📊 How regen affects their marketing efforts in-store and post-purchase
🧠 Scaling to national distribution while maintaining local and regional impact
📈 The rise, stall, and hopeful revival of organic dairy in America
🤯 648,000 to 24,000: Why 95% of U.S. dairy farms disappeared
🥛 How regenerative agriculture can help make family dairy viable again
Links:
Kalona SuperNatural - https://www.kalonasupernatural.com
Open Gates Group - https://www.opengatesgroup.com
Kalona Regenerative Network - https://kalonaregenerativenetwork.com/
Land to Market - https://www.landtomarket.com
Oasis Hummus - https://www.oasisfalafel.com
The Tipping Point - https://a.co/d/1d7X5UK
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