The owners of a Woodlands dairy are challenging Southland businesses to commit to sustainable practices.
Logan and Melissa Johnson, who operate Farm Fresh South, reckon they’ve stopped about 150,000 to 200,000 plastic bottles from ending up in landfills thanks to thier supply of fresh, raw milk in glass bottles.
Now they’re giving Invercargill restaurants and cafes the chance to get in on the action.
The couple added pasteurisation equipment to their dairy operation in December 2019 so they could begin selling their milk in sustainable packaging to businesses.
She was one of Fresh South’s first commercial customers and one of the driving forces behind the dairy’s expansion into commercial products.
Logan and Melissa have been selling fresh, raw milk in glass bottles to private customers for about two years. They deliver to buyers throughout the Southland region.
McNeilly contacted them about supplying her cafe a wee while ago, but because Fresh South’s milk wasn’t pasteurised, it couldn’t be sold commercially.
Logan said it was therefore fitting that Auction House became the farm’s first commercial customer.
Now, about a month later, Fresh South supplies a handful of Invercargill cafes and the Ascot Hotel – who offer the milk as part of their breakfast bar.
Logan and Melissa spent almost a decade working on dairy farms before realising their dream of running their own farm about two and a half years ago.
Having had the luxury of using fresh milk every day, they wanted to share the experience with others.
Today, they own 50 dairy cows and, apart from deliveries, they also sell their products in a shop on their property.
Melissa said people, in general, were paying more attention to what they put into their bodies these days and many of their customers were pleased to have a dairy option that’s gone through as little processing as possible.
The milk’s glass packaging means it’s better for the environment too.
“It’s a natural product that’s infinitely recyclable,” Logan said.
They are planning to add more cows to their farm in the coming months.
The Southland Times
