奶牛场把牛奶装瓶而不是倾倒

奶牛场把牛奶装瓶而不是倾倒

In early April, Pennsylvania dairy farmer Ben Brown got a call from his processor that they wouldn't be able to pick up his milk for a few days. A few days meant hundreds of gallons of milk from Brown's 70-plus Holstein. Asked what he should do with all that milk, Brown was told to dump it.

4月初，宾夕法尼亚州的奶农本·布朗接到他的奶商打来的电话，说他们要过几天才能来取他的牛奶。几天的时间就意味着要从布朗的70多只乳牛中提取数百加仑的牛奶。当被问及该如何处理这些牛奶时，布朗被告知将其倒掉。

When the owners of Whoa Nellie Dairy in Acme, Pennsylvania, announced online they would have to sell all their milk at the shop, this line of cars was the response. (Photo: Michael Malone Photography/Facebook)

Farmers all over the country are facing similar scenarios during the coronavirus pandemic as the food supply chain transforms. In many cases there's plenty of food but no transportation or re-packaging to get it to the people who need it. So farmers are forced to let produce rot in the field or throw away gallons of milk.

在冠状病毒大流行期间，随着食品供应链的转变，全国各地的农民都面临着类似的情况。在许多情况下，有足够的食物，但没有运输或重新包装，以使需要它的人获得它。因此，农民被迫让农产品烂在地里，或者扔掉无数加仑的牛奶。

Trying not to waste a drop

尽量不浪费一滴牛奶

Whoa Nellie Dairy owners Mary Beth and Ben Brown (left to right) and friends Adam and Samantha Shaffer. Samantha works on the farm with the Browns. (Photo: Whoa Nellie Dairy)

Brown and his wife Mary Beth weren't going to let that happen. Their Whoa Nellie Dairy had been in business since the 1700s. The farm is located in Acme, just south of Pittsburgh. They had been bottling and selling about a quarter of their milk in a small farm store with the rest sold to the processor. Sales weren't always good in the store, but they figured they'd spread the word and sell what they could. It was better than letting it go to waste, says Samantha Shaffer, a Whoa Nellie employee and close family friend.

布朗和他的妻子玛丽·贝思不会让这种事情发生。他们的哇哇奈利乳品公司从18世纪就开始营业了。农场位于Acme，就在匹兹堡南部。他们一直在一家小型农场商店装瓶和销售大约四分之一的牛奶，其余的卖给加工商。商店里的销售并不总是很好，但他们认为他们会传播消息，尽可能地销售。萨曼塔·谢弗是奈利公司的员工，也是这家公司的好朋友，她说，这总比白白浪费好。

So, Mary Beth posted on Facebook telling friends and followers that they were being asked to "dump down the drain" a total of 12 milkings. "We are totally disgusted by this kind of waste. (We also do not get paid for the dumped milk obviously.) We can only pasteurize and bottle 30 gallons at a time, but we are going to work around the clock to try and bottle as much as we can this week. We are REALLY going to try to not waste a drop!"

因此，玛丽•贝思在脸书上发帖告诉朋友和关注者，她们被要求“倒进下水道”，总共要挤12次奶。“我们对这种浪费感到非常厌恶。(显然，我们也不会因为倾倒牛奶而得到报酬。)我们一次只能对30加仑的水进行巴氏消毒，但是我们要夜以继日地工作，尽可能地在这周使用瓶装。我们真的要尽量不浪费一滴水!”

She announced that they'd open up the farm store with an extra day and more hours to sell directly to consumers.

她宣布他们将增加一天和更多的时间来直接销售给消费者。

They've sold out every day since they've been open with people waiting patiently, the line often snaking a half mile or more up the road.

自从这家店开张以来，每天的票都卖光了，人们都在耐心地等待着，排队的队伍常常蜿蜒半英里甚至更长的路。

The 'sold out' sign goes up quickly at the dairy. (Photo: Whoa Nellie Dairy)

Some people have been driving from far away to purchase milk and others have been showing their support online.

一些人从很远的地方开车来买牛奶，还有一些人在网上表示支持。

"We drive almost an hour, stood in line for almost an hour in the rain. Would do it again in a heartbeat. The milk is that good!," wrote Sharon Bobich wrote on Facebook. "I would support other Farmers if they decided to sell directly to the public whether it be milk, cheese, meat and of course vegetables. It's good to know where these items are coming from. We owe everything to our Farmers. Thanks for all you are doing."

“我们开了将近一个小时的车，在雨中排了将近一个小时的队。马上就会再来一次。牛奶那么好!Sharon Bobich在脸书上写道。“如果其他农民决定直接向公众出售牛奶、奶酪、肉类，当然还有蔬菜，我会支持他们。知道这些东西来自哪里是件好事。我们的一切都归功于我们的农民。谢谢你们所做的一切。”

Keeping farms alive

让农场好好经营

The Browns milk about 70 cows twice a day on their Pennsylvania farm. (Photo: Whoa Nellie Dairy)

Every single person who has stopped by to purchase milk has been nice and has kind words to say, Shaffer says. Even if they've waited in a long line and the milk has run out, they never complain. Many still come back a couple days in a row, hoping to be able to buy fresh milk.

谢弗说，每个来买牛奶的人都很友好，而且都说了很多客气话。即使他们排了很长的队，牛奶也喝完了，他们也从不抱怨。许多人仍然会连续几天回来，希望能买到新鲜牛奶。

The dairy makes creamline milk, which is minimally processed. It has been pasteurized at a low temperature, but not homogenized or separated. That means the rich cream rises to the top and you have to shake it before you can drink it. It doesn't taste like the milk you buy in stores, Shaffer says.

这家乳品厂生产的是很少加工的creamline牛奶。它在低温下进行了巴氏杀菌，但没有进行均质或分离。这意味着浓稠的奶油会浮到顶部，你必须在喝之前摇晃它。谢弗说，它尝起来不像你在商店里买的牛奶。

The farm is selling whole white milk, whole chocolate milk, and whole strawberry milk in pints, quarts, half gallons, and gallons. They've had to limit how many products people can buy and had to upgrade from their 30-gallon vat to pasteurize milk to a 45-gallon vat. They're talking with a supplier about a 100-gallon vat, Shaffer says, but that won't happen until late summer or early fall.

农场出售全脂牛奶、全脂巧克力牛奶、全脂草莓牛奶，每品脱、每夸脱、每半加仑、每加仑都有。他们不得不限制人们可以购买的产品数量，并且必须将30加仑的牛奶桶升级为45加仑的巴氏杀菌桶。谢弗说，他们正在和供应商讨论100加仑的增值税，但这要到夏末秋初才能实现。

The farm owners and employees are amazed at the feedback they keep receiving from new fans as far away as Australia, the U.K., and Canada. Many ask if they'll ship milk. Instead, they encourage them to look locally.

农场主和农场员工对从澳大利亚、英国和加拿大等地不断收到的新粉丝的反馈感到惊讶。许多人问他们是否会运送牛奶。相反，他们鼓励企业着眼于本地。

"We try to encourage everyone to try to find their local farms who are trying to do the same thing and support them," Shaffer says. "We appreciate all the support. It's so heartwarming."

谢弗说:“我们试图鼓励每个人去寻找他们当地的农场，这些农场也在努力做同样的事情，并支持他们。”“我们感谢所有的支持。它是如此感人的。”