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June Dairy Month: Buying milk is buying local

June is National Dairy Month and a registered dietitian says there are many reasons to celebrate it. Amanda Marsh, with the St. Louis District Dairy Council, says it helps consumers to know that buying dairy is buying local, “When you buy your milk,” she says, “When you buy your cheeses and your yogurts, you’re supporting local farmers around you.”

National Dairy Month was started 83 years ago to celebrate the bounty of milk. Marsh tells Brownfield Ag News, “It was a way just to promote the extra milk that cows are naturally producing because they’re on, you know, summer pasture. So, they’re enjoying the green grass and producing more milk and we get to benefit from that.”

Marsh says dairy foods benefit health, “Milk is full of vitamins and minerals. Nine essential vitamins and minerals, to be exact. And three of those are nutrients for concern which means Americans are not getting enough of these nutrients in their diet.”

The three nutrients of concern in dairy are Vitamin D, calcium and potassium. Three servings of dairy a day are recommended for good health.