[dropcap style=”font-size: 60px; color: #8F9F59;”] G [/dropcap]iven Allansford is deep in cow country, Melissa Lewis is somewhat of a black sheep by using her 20-acre Allansford property to breed and milk goats.

Melissa, who grew up on a dairy farm near Mortlake and is a qualified animal nutritionist, has spent the past 18 months building up a herd of about 50 goats with a mix of Toggenburg (brown and white in colour), Saanens (all white) and British Alpine (black and white) that are all known for their high levels of milk production.

And it is the raw goat’s milk – and byproducts including cheese, yoghurt and icecream – that Melissa is most interested in developing through her Buddy Goat brand, rather than the more conventional path of using the milk to create soaps and cosmetics.

Despite there reportedly being 19 goats on board the First Fleet in 1788, Australia has never really embraced the idea of enjoying a chilled glass of fresh goat’s milk in the morning.

“It’s funny, but the thought of drinking goat’s milk puts a lot of people off and they are far more comfortable with goat’s cheese, yet there are so many health benefits to goat’s milk,” Melissa explains.

[dropcap style=”font-size: 60px; color: #8F9F59;”] M [/dropcap]elissa experienced these benefits first hand when her first son, Paddy, 4, developed asthma several years ago and she changed his diet from cow’s to goat’s milk. The asthma attacks stopped.

“We forget that goat’s milk is actually consumed more than any other milk around the world. It is easier to digest and a lot of people who can’t handle cow’s milk can drink goat’s milk,” Melissa says.

She tells the story of one man who was intolerant to cows milk but tried her goats milk and, for the first time in many years, was able to eat a bowl of breakfast cereal with milk. Another woman uses Melissa’s raw goat’s milk to bathe her young daughter who suffers severe eczema.

Most of Melissa’s raw goat’s milk is sold by a distributor into Melbourne and Geelong where there is a big demand among particularly the Greek and Italian communities for goat’s milk with which to make cheese.

[dropcap style=”font-size: 60px; color: #8F9F59;”] D [/dropcap]ue to stringent food regulations, Melissa is currently only permitted to sell her products marked for “cosmetic use only” and “not for human consumption”, but how customers choose to use the milk is ultimately their decision.

Having spent the past couple of years proving there is a growing market for goat’s milk, Melissa is planning to move into the next stage of commercial production.

Last September she and her husband Darcy, a fencing contractor, converted a cow dairy into a goat milking dairy where her girls line up each day – or twice a day when the milk production is high. They also plan to transform part of a large shed on their property into a commercial kitchen.

It is a significant investment, with a pasteuriser costing around $25,000 alone.

For Melissa, however, it is all about diversification. Apart from her own property, Melissa and her sister Nicole Ritchie run a 200-acre farm at Mortlake, across the road from their parent’s 1000-acre property where the sisters also agist cattle.

Two young sons and another baby on the way have also made life a little busier for Melissa, but she still has plenty of energy and enthusiasm for her new venture.

“It’s about trying new things, seeing where they go and diversifying, because you can’t survive off farming alone any more.”

[box type=”bio”] For more information on Buddy Goat, you can contact Melissa at goatsmilk@live.com.au or find her on Facebook here. [/box]

You might also enjoy…

 

Lana’s garden of Eden

Organic food idea grows and grows

Gorge-ous taste of chocolate

Spread: spreading the love of food

Buffalo cheese a Shaw thing

Small is beautiful at Newton’s Ridge

Thriving on flower power at Naringal

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[dropcap style=”font-size: 60px; color: #A02F2F;”] T [/dropcap]HE nightmares began for Ashlea Wines about a fortnight ago.

Cows were running loose, judges failed to show up, the rain came down in bucketloads and Ashlea left all of the prizes at home.

Such is the stress of being the chief steward for the entire cattle section of the Camperdown Agricultural Show which on Saturday (October 12) kicks off the show season for South-West Victoria.

Ashlea, from South Ecklin, has been chief steward for the past six years and still suffers the last-minute nerves that inevitably come with having full responsibility for making sure everything runs smoothly.

That includes organising judges, of which there are five, securing sponsorship for about $8000 worth of prizes, selecting and organising the feature breed events, and setting up and running the cattle events on the day.

“Every year I say that I am not going to do it for another year…and here I am,” she said with a laugh.

[dropcap style=”font-size: 60px; color: #A02F2F;”] T [/dropcap]he Camperdown show is organised by perhaps one of the smallest committees – only eight hardy volunteers – yet it boasts a strong following, especially for its horse and cattle events.

Ashlea expects to oversee around 100 cattle entered for this year’s show, and that includes five milkers and one bull from her own family’s herd, Bubblefrost Jerseys.

“Fortunately my fiancee (Geoff Church) and cousin (Elyse Meade) will be preparing the cows on the day and looking after that side of things,” she said.

In reality, the preparations begin much earlier – in fact months earlier, when cows intended for show are broken into halters so that they become accustomed to being led around the show-ring.

[dropcap style=”font-size: 60px; color: #A02F2F;”] A [/dropcap]nd then there is the shampooing, shaving, brushing and general preening which needs to be done to ensure the cows are looking udderly gorgeous.

“I am a bit soft on my girls and have them rugged leading up to show day, just like you would a horse, so that their coats are the best condition they can be,” Ashlea explains.

It is not only the cows that need to look good, but also their owners. Those who lead the cows around the ring are expected to dress for the part.

“Last year we had heavy rain so we allowed everyone to walk around in gumboots,” Ashlea said.

Even as a chief steward, there are some things which remain beyond our control.

[box] Find out more about the Camperdown Show on its Facebook page.[/box]

 If you enjoyed this story, you might also enjoy… 

 

Small is beautiful at Newtons Ridge

Joella Hill stitches a stunning range of travel accessories

Thriving on flower power

Make mine milk  – goat’s milk!

Brentan the bee man