Dustin Noble’s brother was allergic to cow milk. And goat milk is a good alternative to cow milk, that is why the Noble family started to raise goats. In 1982, the Noble family borrowed two goats for milk supply. And that was the beginning of Dustin’s journey into goat raising and farming.
On the other side of the state, Justyne who grew up in Kansas started to raise goats when she was a kid, her mother had two Alpine Dairy goats.
Years later, in 2003, Justyne and Dustin met at the American Dairy Goat Association National Show in Iowa. Justyne moved to Tennessee in 2006 to go to college. In 2007, the couple decided to turn their passion for goats into a Grade A licensed dairy and cheese processing. A friend is lending the 230 acre of land in the hills of Williamson County in Tennessee where the dairy complex is located. Everything was completed in 2009. They now have more than hundred goats, they also have two horses : Sassy and Snow and some chicken for personal uses.
A baby goat
The dairy has a barn for baby goats. “They are raised on Alpha Alpha meal which is imported from the Middle West. These goats are taken away from their mother and hand raised on their mother’s milk to regulate the amount of milk they intake. They only need ¼ to a ¼ and a half a day, the mother will usually produce a gallon a day. If the baby goat is left with the mother, it will drink all the milk and there won’t be any left to make the cheese.” said Mr. Noble
Dustin with Sassy
They raise four varieties of goats: Saanen, Toggenburg, Swiss breed and Lamancho .During the day they go out and graze out of the pasture and during the night they stay in the barn. Their oldest goat is 12 years old. Their goats are milked twice a day at 6am and 6pm. Dustin and Justyne do all the work; friends and family help them out from time to time. The dairy is both a full time job and a passion for the couple.
They produce pasteurized milk for health issues reasons and they are the only dairy in the state of Tennessee allowed to sell goat milk. They mainly make flavored and salted chevre and feta. And last but not least, all their goats have names. How cute is that!
Dustin and Justyne at the cheese tasting ... so good!!
http://www.realtimefarms.com/source/5857071/noble-springs-dairy
