This weeks Cutting the Curd brings you Mathew Lange of Lange Dairy Development out of North Carolina and who is also the Development Coordinator of the North Carolina Dairy Advantage. Tune into hear about what small farmstead dairies, not just in North Carolina, are up against in comparison to commercial dairy processors. From market volatility to milk pricing learn how small dairies are using programs like the Dairy Advantage to compete with the commodity market. This episode is sponsored by Whole Foods Market.

John and his wife Amanda are new farmers who run a raw milk dairy which also produces ice cream, yogurt and cheese. John & Amanda Place along with their two children, Mia & Mason, own and operate Keepsake Farm & Dairy. John and Amanda met while attending the University of Delaware where they studied animal science. Amanda went on to attend veterinary college at the University of Georgia and is now a veterinarian at a local animal hospital. This episode has been sponsored by Hearst Ranch.

"I don't think we've even begun to meet demands of the market... We have a group of consumers that are practically begging for more on-farm, organic products." [8:30]

"Preventative health is better than putting a Band-Aid on it, and all of that begins with nutrition." [15:00]

-- John Place on Greenhorn Radio

Cutting the Curd returns after a brief hiatus! This week, Anne Saxelby is joined in the studio by Diane Stemple of Jasper Hill Farm. Diane will be hosting Cutting the Curd while Anne is on maternity leave! Tune in to hear how Hurricane Sandy affected the cheese business in New York City. Bedford Cheese Shop, Saxelby Cheesemongers, and Murray's Cheese are all located in Lower Manhattan and suffered because of the storm. Veronica Pedraza of Meadowood Farms calls in to talk about her experiences last year with Hurricane Irene in Vermont, and to talk about the Dairy Sheep Association of North America Symposium this year. What barriers do people face when starting a sheep dairy? Learn why people like sheep as a multi-purpose animal, but why sheep dairies are still suffering in the United States. This episode has been brought to you by Whole Foods.

"If your parents have a cow dairy, and they're struggling to find a way to make it viable, you can turn that into a cheese-making operation. But no one's really inheriting sheep diary farms from their families. The infrastructure on farms that currently exist... a lot of the designs are meant for cows." [14:00]

-- Veronica Pedraza on Cutting the Curd