June first is World Milk Day and it kicks off National Dairy Month. CEO of Midwest Dairy, Lucas Lentsch, told the American Ag Network everyone can help spread the word about World Milk Day.

“Lift a glass and celebrate the dairy foods that we love, especially a cold glass of milk,” he said. “You can hashtag us by raising a glass of milk on your social channels using #WorldMilkDay and #UndeniablyDairy. To really keep the cheers going, go ahead and tag others and share the great story of enjoying a cold glass of milk on World Milk Day.”

Promoting Transparency

Lentsch said National Dairy Month celebrations help give consumers a look at real dairy farming. He said it comes at a time when consumers are wanting to know more about their food.

“In a day and age when a lot of folks are looking to reconnect with their food, get to know a little bit about the background of that food, where it comes from and who helped produce it, National Dairy Month is just a tremendous opportunity for our dairy farm families to open the barn doors and let the consumers come and learn more about dairy,” he said. “Transparency is directly connected to consumer confidence and trust through transparency.”

“National Dairy Month is about allowing that visibility and welcoming it not just during the month of June, but year-round,” Lentsch continued. “That’s what’s important here, making sure consumers have access to the information to learn animal care and learn about the quality control that goes into making farmers sure they get premium-quality milk that the dairy companies then use to turn into your favorite dairy food or fluid milk or cheese or yogurt or butter or ice cream. It’s connecting with the joy of dairy, and it’s an undeniably dairy effort.”

The Local Connection

He points out dairy also offers consumers an opportunity to connect with local farms.

“One of the great things about dairy and when you’re shopping for dairy, there’s a real story. That story begins on the farm,” he said. “Dairy is a local fresh food that comes, many times, within 24 to 48 hours from the farm to a finished product on the shelf in the store.”

Those hashtags again for World Milk Day and National Dairy Month are #WorldMilkDay and #UndeniablyDairy.