Milkhaus Dairy turns its A2 milk into cheese that might be easier to digest for some people
After decades in farming and working with dairy equipment, Lonnie Holthaus knows all about the ups and downs of the industry. He got his start on an Iowa dairy farm before moving to southwestern Wisconsin with his wife, Rochelle, to raise their three sons.
Holthaus knows the realities of dairy farming, so even as he faced a life-altering health crisis that affected his mobility and left him wheelchair-bound, he was planning for his family’s future in the industry. After learning about A2 milk and beta-casein protein, and how it might be easier for some people to digest, he found his focus. In 2020, he and Rochelle launched their family-run Milkhaus Dairy in Fennimore.
Today the farm has 350 cows. Holthaus spent nearly a decade breeding his herd with a focus on A2. Currently 100 of his cows provide milk for Milkhaus Dairy’s A2 branded cheese, made by Cedar Grove Cheese in Plain. As Holthaus hears from customers across the country who find the cheese works for them, he is especially proud that this month Milkhaus Dairy’s mozzarella placed 15th out of 42 entries in that category at the World Championship Cheese Contest held in Madison.
World Championship Cheese Contest officials do not require labeling for A1 or A2, but communications director Grace Atherton confirmed "Milkhaus Dairy's entries in this year's contest were some of the only submissions branded as A2 products."
Five varieties of Milkhaus Dairy’s A2 branded cheese are currently available, sold at 180 Hy-Vee stores and via the farm's website (milkhausdairy.com) for shipping across the country. In fact, the majority of the dairy’s cheese customers are from outside of Wisconsin. Holthaus said he sends more cheese to Tennessee than anywhere else in the country, and some of his biggest shipments go to Alaska.
Holthaus talked with us during a busy week between the World Championship Cheese Contest, caring for grandkids, and a drive to Illinois to pick up farming equipment.
How his health influenced his approach to farming
I'm originally a dairy farmer going back to the ‘80s in Iowa. I got an opportunity to come to Fennimore to manage a dairy equipment business. The '80s were a really bad time in ag, and we were just a young couple with a baby. I managed the dairy equipment division at a co-op here for about 10 years. We were one of the top dealers for Universal Dairy at the time, and the company offered me a job. I became a rep for Universal. Then in 2003, I got stricken with a nerve disorder, Guillain-Barre. I was paralyzed from the neck down. ... I spent four months in the hospital and two years in a wheelchair. The dairy equipment company was amazing, took awesome care of me. ... They were going to introduce a new product, a computer that feeds baby calves. "I know you’re not going to be available to us for a while, but can you get on the internet?" At that time, my hands didn't work, I used a pencil to hit the buttons. I don't like sitting around. I wanted to learn as much as I can, to be the calf feeding specialist in North America.
My son always wanted to milk cows. We’ve got tons of experience in the industry. My wife is an accountant. "Let’s build a dairy," she said. So I built a dairy.
How DNA testing helps him create this cheese
My son went to college in Platteville. He came home and told me he learned about A2. What is that? "It is a protein in milk, and if you have cows that only produce A2, the lactose-intolerant people can drink the milk and eat the cheese." I kind of foo-fooed it a bit, but the more I read and learned, the more excited I got. ... We decided to focus on that. You have to DNA test the cows to be official. I'm calling it official, but this technology is so new, there are no rules yet. We're going to attempt to make the rules so this new concept is done properly. Somebody has to be first.
We DNA tested a bunch of cows. The test will actually show you there are two genes in a cow that designates the protein. The industry will call it A1A1 or A2A2. ... We found a bunch of cows that were A1A2 and started breeding them to be A2A2. Then we test the calves, and hopefully some of them dropped the A1 gene. It took seven years before we had enough (cows) to try this.
The start of his cheese journey
We found a little cheese plant and hauled the milk there. He made cheese for us. These cheesemakers, when they make something different, they always taste it. When he got done, he said: “This cheese is different. I can taste it, it has a different flavor and I really like it.” We brought some home and started asking around for people who were lactose-intolerant. We were just handing out samples. ... They’d call a week later and say, "This works. I didn't have a stomachache," or whatever. We decided we're on to something.
We created Milkhaus Dairy officially in early 2020. We had a trailer made, our name on it. We were just ready to hit the ground running and COVID hit. It has been a journey since then.
By the numbers
We have 350 cows, and there are 100 cows in a separate pen dedicated to the cheese business. Not all the cows are certified. I call it certified. Really there is no such thing as a certification, but we have to have a way to distinguish that these cattle have been tested. The DNA testing is, in my opinion, the only 100% way to prove that animal is A2. When I went to my advertising people, she said there is no such thing. Well, we are certified. We created that.
How he found their award-winning cheesemaker
We ran into the owner of Cedar Grove Cheese (Bob Wills) at the World Dairy Expo. We liked the cheese he made. We were telling him about what we were thinking about doing, well before we were official. They were excited; they’d heard of A2 but didn't know anyone who had done this. They've been really good to us.
What else he’s learned
Most milk you buy in the store is not A2, unless it is the brand. According to statistics I found, 62% of the population in the U.S. has some dairy issues. This is not a fad or a phase. We ship cheese coast to coast. It is crazy that when people discover us — and they're discovering us — how badly people want to eat cheese. These are people who weren’t industry customers before. ... I’m a rookie at this whole thing, but I have a lot of good people, like Cedar Grove and Meister Cheese, they've been helping us a lot.
Why he wants to get the word out about A2
We’re in Wisconsin, the biggest cheese state in the world. Everybody and their mother’s cousin makes cheese, but we sell more cheese in Tennessee and Alaska than we do in Wisconsin. We have people here (in Wisconsin) who buy cheese from us, and they are becoming good customers, but there are a million people who don’t know what A2 is and don’t know we exist. Just give us a try.
What World Cheese Championship recognition means for Milkhaus Dairy
I know to the general public being 15 doesn’t mean anything, but our (mozzarella) cheese got 15th in the whole world? Just the fact that we placed (at the World Championship Cheese Contest) is insane. This is not a local two-bit show, this is the best of the best of the best. It is a big deal, and as far as I know, we were the only one of all divisions that was A2.
Why they focus on just 5 cheeses
Originally we had smoked cheese, and that is awesome, but it doesn't look great in the package. People shy away from it. Now we have five varieties. We have farm cheddar, a colby, the mozzarella, those are the three most popular. Then we have a garlic dill which is awesome, and a jalapeno pepper.
Something we learned, at Hy-Vee and even a co-op in Minneapolis as well, they were taken aback we didn’t have more specialty cheeses with flavors. I said you have to remember our customer is not necessarily an avid cheese eater, they’re just learning. The person we are focusing on, the lactose-intolerant group, they’re still focusing on finding something that works.
Fork. Spoon. Life. explores the everyday relationship that local notables have with food. To suggest future personalities to profile, email clewis@journalsentinel.com.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Milkhaus Dairy turns its A2 milk into more digestive-friendly cheese
