Thirty five years ago a young high school student and a Jersey heifer named Shalom started out on a journey, one that would eventually lead to the creation of an independent, family-run dairy near Bowersville in Greene County.
Todd Fleihman reflected fondly back on that first dairy cow.
“I liked that name, cause it was in the bible — peace. Jersey’s always seemed peaceful,” he said
It's definitely peaceful at Swallow Hill Jersey Dairy, where the only sound on a snowy day is the occasional moo from one of the young dairy cows in a nearby shed.
Fliehman doesn’t advertise his roadside milk stand, but a steady stream of customers make their way down the country road to find this hidden gem.
In 2018 Swallow Hill was almost one of the 59 dairies in Ohio that went out of business, due to the low cost of milk versus the high cost of operating expenses. Something that dairies continue to struggle with today.
But the community rallied around the dairy.
“Of course word got out that I was quitting it, and the milk shed took off,” Fliehman said. “I never realized how much a part of the community this dairy was until then.”
Taylor Byer’s been coming to the self-serve milk shed for nine months. She used to drink almond milk for a while.
“And then I tried this. It’s just so pure and it tastes different from any milk you can buy in a store, and I just absolutely love that,” Byer said, as she picked out milk from the self-serve cooler. “And just supporting a local, small farm is just fantastic. That’s what I always try to go toward.”
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Categories: Ohio, Livestock, Dairy Cattle