One day while making a bowl of cereal, my middle son asked how milk comes from the cows. I tried to explain the process but realized I too didn’t know exactly how milk gets from the udders, to becoming a dipping pool for my cookies. After researching online, we found the most incredible farm here in our very own town, Jupiter Creamery to help us learn.
What started as an adorable question from an inquisitive mind turned into a family field trip to the farm! Our tour was hands-on, informative for all ages, and blossomed into a long term relationship as my oldest can’t wait to volunteer there. Located in Jupiter Farms, this ten-acre farm tells of the life cycle of cows, pigs, chickens and more. Founder, Suzie Dudas, took a passion for creating a clean, healthy lifestyle for her family and turned it into a nonprofit educational outreach called Nourishing Food for Thought. “In addition to providing clean, wholesome food to the Jupiter community (and beyond), we began our true mission of empowering people to grow their own food, and providing them with the resources and skills they need to make the move from consumers to producers”, says Suzie. And boy did they! Our entire family walked away from that farm feeling empowered to live a healthier life for our current and future generations. As a nonprofit, they rely on generous donations and volunteers so for a small contribution, here’s an insight into what you’ll see and learn:
- Cows. The friendliest of cows! They immediately walked up and greeted us, we fed them and a few of the kids received a very detailed, hands-on lesson on how to milk them. Our group learned about pasteurization, homogenization, and the holistic care each cow receives. We even got the chance to brush and give the baby cows their milk bottles.
- You’ll learn the life cycle of a chicken while possibly snuggling a few. Suzie does an exceptional job at teaching on child’s level to ensure they feel included and understand what chickens actually do for us. The questions were endless from the boys as we spoke of egg-production, pasture-raised poultry, what grocery store eggs look like verse different farm raised ones, coops, and more. We couldn’t resist buying a few dozen eggs and breakfast the next morning was definitely better than imagined!
- Pigs! And these pigs do not disappoint with their overly loud and funny snorting. We met three pigs named; Bacon, Porkchop and Christmas Dinner – and you guessed right as to why they’re named that. Whereas the kids seemed distracted as they pet these massive animals, we did learn that pigs especially will encounter the full life cycle at the farm. Hesitant to explain to the boys what we eat in comparison to what we’re petting, it was an easier lesson than I imagined because Suzie made farm life so intriguing. I can guarantee though, that their life while on the farm is a happy, healthy one!
Nourishing Food for Thought also provides many activities for our community to be apart of Jupiter Creamery. There are kids clubs, camps, educational tours, yoga, workshops and a community garden. Their goal is to provide each household with tools to have a clean way of living. We were elated to have found this hidden gem locally and encourage you to take the tour and open your eyes to wholesome food while supporting small businesses.
https://www.nourishingfoodforthought.org
