Nugget is one of a hundred Jersey cows at Creamline Farms outside Milton-Freewater.

MILTON-FREEWATER — It takes a lot to keep the ladies of Creamline Farms happy.

The 100 head of Jersey cattle at farm on Umapine Road outside Milton-Freewater spend their days in the milking parlor, peacefully indulging in cud-chewing bliss.

Erica Carroll and her husband Tyler, who own and operate the farm, would know.

“Twenty-five years ago, when we said we wanted to start a small business milking cows, everybody said we’d never make it,” Erica Carroll said. “By all means, they were right. Everything from regulation to the actual finances is a huge hill to climb. You just have to have a lot of grit in this business. It’s hard as a dairyman because it becomes who you are. The work and the sacrifice are unbelievable.”

Carroll said there is no such thing as a sick day or a vacation when becoming a farmer.

“Someone has to take care of the animals,” she said. “You can’t just walk away.” 

For the dairy cows at Creamline Farms, life seems luxurious, except for the early morning milking session at 3 a.m., which the farmhands aren’t particularly fond of either. The cows are led into the milking parlor, where they are connected to the milking machines. Once the milking is complete, they are allowed to roam freely in the feed area, to either fall back asleep or wait eagerly for breakfast.

They spend the rest of the day hanging out in the green pastures, chewing their cud or napping until they get milked again in 12 hours.

“The cows really like their routine,” Carroll said. “They’re kind of divas about it actually.”

Grant award

Creamline Farms was recently recognized by the Pacific Coast Coalition-Dairy Business Innovation Initiative — or PCC-DBII — for its innovative and sustainable look at raising dairy cows to get the best product on consumers’ tables and in its fridges.

The PCC-DBII operates in six states — Arizona, California, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon and Washington — and is supported by partners and subaward grant funding which has made more than $11.4 million available to dairy businesses for innovation and sustainability-related investments, including equipment and training.

Creamline Farms received a grant totaling $55,000, which will help purchase a cream separator.

“We have so many customers who have been asking and waiting for us to start selling cream,” Carroll said. “The separator will allow me to abide by all of the rules and regulations on making and selling cream. With the grant money, we will also be able to purchase a small milk analyzer so I can check fats and protein levels in the milk.”

Carroll said this is the first grant Creamline Farms has received.

“When I saw that we were selected as one of the recipients, I was in shock,” she said. “I am so happy and super excited to start this next addition of Creamline Farms.”

How it started

Carroll said her husband started with dairy cows when he was in high school. When the couple got together, they purchased land at 50901 Umapine Road, outside Milton-Freewater, that would later become Creamline Farms. They started a custom calf business where they would raise dairy heifers for other farmers.

Meanwhile, Umapine Creamery, which Tyler Carroll’s parents own, started to move away from milking cows to making cheese and other dairy products. Walla Walla Cheese Company joined the creamery’s forces.

“When Umapine Creamery and Walla Walla Cheese Company came together, they outgrew their space very quickly,” Carroll said. “I don’t even know if they were over there for a year before they needed to get more space.”

How is Umapine Creamery and Walla Walla Cheese Company connected? Creamline Farms supplies all of the fresh milk.

“Everything just grew massively fast for us and the two cheese-making companies,” she said. “It’s a really nice sort of partnership between all of us, because without each other, it would be tough.”

Creamline Farms offers flavored milks ranging from chocolate to orange cream, and even seasonal flavors such as eggnog. Carroll said about three years ago she decided to add butters to the stock as well.

“It’s super fun,” she said. “People have really taken to it. It’s crazy to see how excited people get when we make a new flavor or try something different.”

Dairy industry

The dairy industry in the United States has been consolidating throughout the past several years with smaller scale dairies closing the doors to their milking parlors.

“Nobody milks 100 cows, it’s just not economically viable,” Carroll said. “People have to have 1,000 cows just to make a living, and that’s hard work, especially as a small place in the Pacific Northwest.”

She said bigger dairy operations are industrialized and do not allow for the general public to be hands on with the farm and the animals, which is one thing that Creamline Farms makes an effort to do every year with a farm open house and tours in the spring months.

“People are further and further removed from reality, and some have no idea where their food comes from,” Carroll said. “We love to have the kids out for tours. It’s so funny actually because we usually have a halter-broke cow that is good around people. We show them the different body parts on the cow and every time we reach down and squeeze milk out of the udder, the kids’ faces are absolutely shocked.”

Carroll said it’s exciting for her to provide those sorts of learning experiences. One of her favorite questions that always seems to come up on the tours is “why are the cows staring at me?” She said she always answers with “because you’re staring at them.”

“I think that is definitely what is going through the cows’ heads,” she laughed.