Why We Require One Food Order per Month with Off-Farm Milk Pickup

For off-farm milk pickups, there’s an important bit of context that helps this make sense.

The Keim Family Herd Share is owned and operated by Atlee and Anna Keim and their five children. They raise and milk the cows. They do not use phones, internet, vehicles, refrigeration, or modern infrastructure.

ZOE Farms is a separate business. While we are close friends with the Keim family, we are not the same operation. This is why there are two websites -- all "milk money" goes directly to the Keim's, but it's all maintained and managed by the ZOE Farms "family".  

To make off-farm milk pickup possible, ZOE Farms provides all of this modern infrastructure required to take orders, move, store, and deliver milk safely:

• Website operation/communication
• Transportation
• Refrigeration
• Labor
• Buildings and handling equipment

We do this at no charge to the Keim family so they can remain focused on farming.

That infrastructure, however, is not free for us.

Rather than charging a delivery fee — which you can’t eat and don’t benefit from nutritionally — we chose a different approach.

How It Works (Simply)

If you pick up milk off-farm, will need to place at least one food order per month from ZOE Farms (https://zoefarms.com/) 

That food order:

• Covers the real costs of milk logistics, transport and refrigeration
• Keeps milk delivery sustainable
• Gives you actual food instead of a delivery surcharge

Instead of paying a delivery fee, you get beef, chicken, eggs, pork, cheese, or other real food that you get benefit from. 

Why This Matters

Many farms charge delivery or handling fees to make the numbers work. We believe it’s better — and more honest — to recover those costs through food you can feed your family.

By ordering food monthly, you:

• Support the infrastructure that makes milk delivery possible
• Keep the herd share financially stable
• Receive high-quality food instead of paying a non-food fee

The Best Option

Most families choose to set up a monthly food subscription:

• Save 5% on each order + get free items
• Automatically satisfy the milk pickup requirement

Food orders can be placed here:
👉 https://zoefarms.com/

Communications: We use email as our official form of communication. Please add info@ohiorawmilk.com to your list of trusted senders.