The Making of Cow-lebrities, by Bailie Schultz

I love dairy cows. Not just cute cow photos, funny videos, or something like that. Twelve hundred pounds of flesh and big, brown eyes with their long, pink tongue cows. I have devoted time and energy to caring for my own cows. I have traveled across the United States competing in contests to judge cows, attended conventions competing in public speaking and educational displays on cows, and even traveled to the most prestigious Jersey cow show in the world last fall with my heifer Nora. At the most recent National Holstein Convention in Appleton, Wisconsin, I met Mark Koch. I knew nothing about Mark, but the next day he was tagging along with my mom and me to tour at Synergy Holsteins. I still did not learn much about Mark, other than he milked cows and is a Oregon State University graduate. 

The next time I saw Mark was about for two seconds at the Oregon State Fair, he was walking swiftly down our aisle wearing a TMK hat and shirt rolling a cooler behind him filled with various cheeses. Fast forward six months later, my family was traveling down to Oregon State University and made a pit stop at TMK Creamery since we have never been there before. 

In my lifetime, I have toured around 50 dairies, and TMK Dairy is easily the smallest. They only milk around 20 cows, mostly Holsteins and Jerseys. While Mark showed my family around, we talked about each cows’ families and how they have improved over generations. 

I noticed some things immediately that are different compared to other farms. At ever dairy I had been to before, each cow has an ear tag with a number to represent them; however, these cows had their actual names. There ear tags were a vibrant red with the logo “TMK” up high, and the cow’s name written in clean cursive below. And of course, like any dairy cow, they had a little bit of ear wax and manure on each of the tags. 

We continued through the rest of the tour, including the milking parlor, group heifer pens, and individual calf hutches and finished in the creamery and tasting room. Mark sent us on our way with a full bag of cheese. That day lead me to interview Tessa Koch as she specializes in the marketing aspect of the business. I was intrigued by the history of TMK Creamery – and their unique story. 

TMK is very different from most traditional dairies today because dairy farming has not been in the family for several generations. Mark’s brother Todd founded TMK, not their parents. TMK Creamery was born because of a successful 4-H project and the love for dairy cows. Todd was a 4-Her that had a thriving dairy project that grew with him. 

By the time Todd was a senior at Oregon State University, he had to make a decision. He had so many cows and needed to take action; he loved his cows and did not want to give them up. Todd’s situation was very scary – and his solution was daring. I relate to Todd’s dilemma as my successful 4-H project has grown to six cows now, but luckily my cows have a home on a dairy farm where they can stay forever. Todd decided to become a dairy farmer, an expensive investment, especially when you are still a college student. But after a few years, the family decided to take TMK dairy to the next level and become TMK creamery. 

“They sold their milk to a cooperative in McMinnville. When the co-op had to sell their assets and to disperse, we either needed to send our milk to a different creamery or build our own, so we did,” said Tessa Koch, Todd’s wife. 

At TMK, they see the dairy product from the beginning to the end. From getting the milk straight from the cows to processing it into fresh creamy cheese to aging and then packaging for consumers to take home, TMK is a family operation with the unique opportunity to show consumers every step to making cheese. TMK is involved in every part of making their product every day. 

Also, TMK opens their farm seven days a week and gives free tours. This allows for an open conversation with consumers. 

“The number one reason why we exist, and why we ended up opening the farm and the creamery seven days a week, is because we want people to know where their food came from,” shared Tessa.

A farm tour is a great way to get in touch with your food. But Tessa explained that when they offer tours, it is not to change someone’s mind but to educate and broaden their horizons. This resonates with me, as I had the same mission as the 2018 King & Pierce Counties Dairy Ambassador. In my role, I focused on educating consumers on dairy farmers and their practices. I spoke at 50 events, sharing the story of dairy to over 16,000 people. In that year, it became clear to me that the primary concern consumers have today is the treatment, comfort, and safety of dairy cows. 

“The cow is the hero of our story. She’s number one. She comes before anything else, so her comfort is number one. We wanted to create a comfortable environment for our cows, so we created an environment at our farm where she can do what she likes to do,” said Tessa. 

Being a sustainable operation is very important to TMK. This is best showcased in their house-made vodka. They love to tell consumers and visitors the story and science behind the creation of cow vodka. Their vodka is made from whey, a by-product of the cheese-making process. The TMK processing plant is so small that nobody wants to come pick it up and dehydrate the whey for protein bars like what is done at larger plants.

“We call it cow-cohol. We started getting attention more because it’s like ‘Oh yeah, you have a creamery.’ Anybody that has a creamery makes cheese. Now our making vodka from the bi-product sets us apart,” said Tessa.

Vodka is not the only unique product at TMK. Their most well-known cheese is a single cow cheese. They are the only creamery in the country that I know that makes a single cow cheese and most likely the only one. This means all the milk to make the cheese came from “Miss TMK,” one of the oldest cows I met on tour. 

“Single cow cheese is one way that we can market our cow-lebrities. Then we are also going to be doing a single cow vodka to promote that animals are true heroes of the story. Single cow cheese and single cow vodka came from that pride of promoting the actual animal who makes all of this,” said Tessa.

It is impressive the way the Koch family has built a community from their 4-H project. Their community teaches as it shows consumers where dairy products come from. Furthermore, they give kids the opportunity to help on the farm and show calves at the county fair. It is dairy farmers like the Koch family that give kids the chance to be involved with the dairy industry, and I am one of those kids. Another farm gave me the same kind of chance to lease a show calf in 2015. That opportunity has led me to choose a career path educating consumers on the value of agriculture and farmers to their daily lives. 

As with many products from animal agriculture, there are multiple stigmas and biases from consumers towards dairy. The two biggest ones are dairy farmers do not care for their cows, and they are destroying the earth. I, like every person in the dairy industry, love cows. I know exactly where each cow’s favorite spot is to get the good scratches. My cows know me when I go to the farm; they come running through the pasture to get some pets and give me a lick or two. Dairy farmers care for their cows as well the land that supports their farm 24/7. It would amaze you to know most farms reuse water three to four times, and often cow’s diets include biproducts from other industries such as brewing beer or harvesting cotton. Like the Koch’s at TMK Creamery, dairy farmers love their cows, the land they farm, and want to make delicious products for every person to eat.

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