An Extremely Brief History of Milk in Florida

Writing last month's article about the Pine Ridge Dairy made me realize that Florida is not known for milk production. Citrus, sugar and cattle yes, but not milk.

Back around 1900 Floridians didn't put milk in coffee or consume much milk at all. In Leesburg if you wanted milk you'd stop the "dairy on foot" which was a farmer walking his cow down the street and buy a quart of raw milk. It would be warm and creamy, neither pasteurized nor homogenized.

The Dairy on Foot

Milk consumption did go up in the early 1900s because northern snowbirds from big cities liked milk with their tea, coffee, cereal, rice pudding and creamy desserts. But that was a pain in the ass because a dairy cow kept producing 7 gallons of milk a day in the summer whether the farmer wanted it or not.

Cooling milk after Pasteurization

Real demand for milk started around 1920 when it was shown that children who drank milk regularly were better developed, healthier and stronger so the state got involved in the marketing and development of a Florida dairy industry and introduced milk into schools.

Next time you are cycling in Leesburg make sure you don't run into that farmer with his cow!