We now have Longhorn Jack from Arena. Arena, Wisconsin is not a very big town, but it is the home of Arena Cheese Factory. This is where Co-Jack cheese was invented back in the l970's. Contrary to most co-jacks, this cheese is all Monterey Jack. They use a yellow dye on half the batch, and leave the other half white. Yellow dye adds no flavor to cheese as all cheese is naturally white. The Longhorn is only the shape of the press that is used to form the cheese into a round shape instead of a square. It has nothing to do with the kind of cheese. If the Longhorn press is used to shape the cheese, it shows up in the name. In essence, Arena's Longhorn Co-Jack cheese is a Monterey Jack cheese pressed into a round shape. The co- simply refers to the 2 colors of cheese. We took out the co- in the name to eliminate confusion as there is no Colby in it. Be sure to try some next time you're visiting the Moo Roo or Outlet.

We would like to remind our customers that there is seating for about 48 people at the Moo Roo. If you're looking for a place to have a meeting, shower, party, etc., just call the Moo Roo 234-3309. There are some very quiet times in our "Pasture" mornings and early afternoons. People find it to be a good place to meet. Refer questions and reservations to the Moo Roo.

We now have a cement cow sitting under our "soft serve" sign at the outlet in Cedar Falls. Customers have decided she needs a name, so we are having a contest. If you have a name suggestion, please submit it at the Outlet. The top 6 names will be placed on a ballot and listed in the November newsletter for others to vote on their favorite. The top 6 names will also receive a 1/2 gallon of ice cream. The winning name will receive a $20 gift card for the Moo Roo or Outlet. We are excited to see just how creative our customers can be!

Hansen's soft serve, Lite ice cream has been a hit this past month. Many customers have inquired about the details of the product. Our soft serve vanilla ice cream is 5% fat and nonhomogenized. We use real vanilla flavor. It is a Hansen product because we use Hansen's dairy product to make it. It contains no corn syrup sweetner, but does have egg yolks in it. By definition, it could be considered a custard. Our soft serve is as homemade as possible with low air content. It is also a lower calorie treat with just 40 calories per ounce, than our no- sugar added ice cream: 52 calories per ounce, and our hard dip ice cream: 70 calories per ounce. If you haven't tried it yet, you're missing out!

Blue cheese and gorgonzola are both made with raw milk. Gorgonzola is known to be a sweeter, drier cheese. The blue cheese consumption is only 1/4 lb. per person per year making it a very low seller. The maker, from Faribault, Minnesota, enters contests and competes well. As bizarre as it sounds, they age the blue cheese in underground caves where they can control the temperature and humidity. Who would have thought?

I always look forward to your news and the description of one of the cows. Thanks for explaining how the pork you carry is produced. I'll try some. Aged cheddar is wonderful. Buying it locally sure beats sending to New York or Vermont. What is it with soft ice cream when the regular stuff is so good!! i like the convenience of pre-made cones at the outlet. Also, I appreciate being able to buy no-sugar-added for my diabetic friends. Your dairy is a splendid addition to this community.

In honor of Halloween, Evil is Cow of the Month for October. Evil is all black with only a little white on her legs, so she is perfect for hiding in the shadows of the barn. She is a young cow, born on Jan. 31, 2006, and has great potential to produce milk and good offspring. Right now, she is producing 8 gallons of milk a day. Herd manager Blake Hansen says she is great to work with even though her name says otherwise. "I am sure glad that she didn't live up to her name," Blake says. "Even though I feel bad for naming her that, I still take care of her like I do the rest of the herd." Evil is pregnant and due on Jan. 13.

We are now offering organ meat for dogs for $1.00 per pound. This meat comes from Hansen's cows and is available at the Moo Roo and the Outlet. Bring your best friend a special treat!

We have purchased a piece of land off of Waterloo Road behind the Holiday Inn in Cedar Falls. We are looking for ideas on how to develop this land to further promote Cedar Falls and our business. Feel free to leave any comments at the stores, or use the email link at the bottom of this newsletter. We appreciate your opinions.

We have had many customers ask why our milk tastes the way it does. We contribute our good tasting milk to the following key ingredients. 80% of the flavor is based upon the special diet our cows are fed. 10% is contributed to the milk having a low bacteria count. The other 10% is contributed to how the milk is processed. In large scale milk coops, milk comes from many different farms. These cows are fed a variety of diets. While federal regulations dictate appropriate bacteria account, the lower the better. Our milk is non- homogenized, unlike most other milks. So, these three things cause the taste of Hansen's milk to be so different than the others.

Hansen's milk costs more because the special diet fed to our cows is more expensive. We also produce less milk than bigger companies. We try to keep the overhead low at our stores, and we sell other quality products at affordable prices to help keep our milk more affordable.