National Milk Day commemorates the day that milk was first delivered in glass bottles on January 11, 1878. Each year, on January 11 people across the United States observe National Milk Day to celebrate America’s number one beverage. If your family would like to join in on the National Milk Day fun, consider trying out some of the milk-themed activities below!
1. Take a tour, pet a calf and enjoy some ice cream at Perrydell Farm and Dairy!
Since 1963, Perrydell Farm and Dairy has strived to provide the York County community with the freshest dairy products available. This Family-owned and operated farm and dairy bottles its own milk, and make all of its ice creams on site! Come and see how milk is gathered, processed, and bottled by taking a self-guided tour.
2. Enter the Macaroni Kid Milk Mustache Photo Contest!
Snap a pic of your family with their very best milk mustache write a caption about why they drink milk and post your picture on our Milk Mustache Photo Contest post on January 11. One winner will be picked at random and will receive a special prize. The winner will be announced in the January 16th newsletter.
3. Dress like a cow for the day
2. Try different types of milk
These days, there are many kinds of non-dairy milk substitutes such as almond, soy, rice, coconut, and flax. Try taste-testing different types and vote on which your family likes best. For a fun twist on this idea, you can also try unusual types of cheese or ice cream too.
4. MYO Butter
- Fill a mason jar halfway up with heavy whipping cream.
- Be sure the lid is tight, then shake.
- Pass the jar around and let the residents take turns shaking until the cream separates into a solid mass of butter and liquid buttermilk.
- Pour off the buttermilk. (You can drink this or use it for baking.)
- Place the mass of butter in a strainer and rinse with cold water to remove the remaining buttermilk.
- Mix in salt as desired.
- Serve the butter on warm bread fresh out of a bread machine. Delicious!
3. Make ice cream in a bag
You only need 5 ingredients to make your own yummy ice cream in a bag:
- Half and Half OR you can use 1/2 whole milk and 1/2 cream. We have also made it with whole milk and it will still turn out but the ice cream won’t be as creamy
- Salt
- Ice
- Vanilla
- Sugar
Pour 1 cup of half and half into a small ziploc bag. Add 1.5 teaspoons of vanilla extract and 1 tablespoon of sugar. Seal the bag firmly and get any excess air out. In the larger ziploc bag, fill it about 1/2 way with ice. Add 1/4 cup of salt. Add your small bag and fill with extra ice on top. Seal the large bag. Shake for 6 minutes and enjoy.
4. Milk carton bowling
- Rinse and dry 6 milk cartons or jugs.
- Place a light weight on the bottom of each carton for stability.
- Set up the cartons in a pattern like bowling pins: 3 in the front, 2 in the middle, and 1 in the back.
- Use a toy ball as a bowling ball, or it’s even more fun to use a piece of round fruit like an orange.
6. Turn an old milk bottle into a watering can
10. Share some milk trivia with your family and friends:
— United States and Australia are the world’s largest exporters of milk and milk products.
— Throughout the world, there are more than 6 billion consumers of milk and milk products.
— In the Middle Ages, milk was called the virtuous white liquor because alcoholic beverages were more reliable than water.
— 1863 – French chemist and biologist Louis Pasteur invented pasteurization, a method of killing harmful bacteria in beverages and food products.
— 1884 – American Doctor Hervey Thatcher of New York City, invented the first glass milk bottle, called ‘Thatcher’s Common Sense Milk Jar’, which was sealed with a waxed paper disk.Later, in 1932, plastic-coated paper milk cartons were introduced commercially as a consequence of their invention by Victor W. Farris.
— The females of all mammal species can by definition produce milk, but cow milk dominates commercial production. In 2011, FAO estimates 85% of all milk worldwide was produced from cows.
— Aside from cattle, many kinds of livestock provide milk used by humans for dairy products. These animals include: buffalo, goat, sheep, camel, donkey, horse, reindeer and yak.
— Milk is processed into a variety of dairy products such as cream, butter, yogurt, kefir, ice cream and cheese.
— Modern industrial processes use milk to produce casein, whey protein, lactose, condensed milk, powdered milk and many other food-additive and industrial products.
