Wheaton's 1871 Dairy Brings Organic Milk Delivery to Customers' Doors

What began as a quest for healthy food options for his five daughters turned into a business pursuit for Travis Pyykkonen.

Pyykkonen is the owner and founder of Wheaton-based 1871 Dairy, which brings back the once-standard practice of home milk delivery.

Launched eight months ago, 1871 Dairy delivers organic milk and cheese from the farm directly to the doors of its customers once a week.

Partnering with Castle Rock Organic Farms in Osseo, WI, 1871 Dairy brings minimally processed certified organic milk and cheese to customers in a limited delivery area including Wheaton, Glen Ellyn, Lombard and Naperville.

While pursuing the idea of what wholesome food is, Pyykkonen began gravitating toward the local food movement, an effort to build locally based, self-sustaining food economies. Through that pursuit, he began to appreciate the work of craft farmers—those who are not producing in the mass quantities necessary in industrialized farming.

“Chicago used to be—all the local communities had their local dairy or creamery,” he said. “Connecting with local communities to bring that back would be our goal and connecting with the farmers who do that well would be great.”

A growing number of consumers are moving away from over-processed foods, he said. There is a whole trend toward sustainable farming and minimally processed foods.

In addition, businesses define a community and Pyykkonen said he sought out feedback on whether his idea would be well-received in the Wheaton community. The business is doing well enough that Pyykkonen is planning to add another delivery day. Right now, delivery is limited to once a week.

“We connected with farmers—those who do the whole process, care for the cows to the making of the cheese—it’s more of a craftsman process rather than industrialized farming,” he said. “We are connecting the community with how we get our food. 1871 makes the connection with farmers who are doing it right and doing it well.”

The business’ name is derived from the Great Chicago Fire of 1871, when Mrs. O’Leary’s cow allegedly kicked over a lantern causing the fire. The fire was a turning point in Chicago’s history, allowing it to transform into the metropolitan city it is, but in doing so, the city lost the local dairies and creameries that once existed, Pyykkonen said.

His hope is to one day bring back pastured cows to the Chicago area. For now, 1871 Dairy brings organic milk to consumers.

The milk is minimally processed, he said. First, it is produced at a low-volume, unlike large industrialized dairies. Even some organic milk companies produce at high volume. The cows at Castle Rock Organic eat a grass-based diet and produce at lower volumes.

“We don’t supply a lot of milk, but what we supply is going to be really good,” he said. “When they get a grass based diet, cows are healthier and produce good milk for 8-12 years.”

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The milk is not homogenized, a process that changes the fat content so that it distributes in the bottle, a process necessary for longer shelf-life and shipping, he said.

“We deliver it fresh within 48 hours of being bottled, the cream does rise to the top if it sits, but if you do it fresh, it does reconstitute into the milk when you shake it,” he said.

Pasteurization is required but is done at low temperatures to cause minimal changes to the milk, he said.

The cost of the milk is comparable to organic milk bought at the store. Though it is slightly higher and there is $1 delivery charge, customers also enjoy the convenience of having milk and cheese delivered to their homes, he said.

A lot of customers are gravitating toward the business for the nutritional aspect, he said, adding there is also a concern about what is being done with the land and how products are manufactured.

“I don’t think the home delivery is a trend, the trend is what wholesome food is and the process. People are becoming more educated about how food is grown and the whole cycle with [production],” he said. “ There is an artisanal aspect of anything we create. You can create something and have it be high volume and have the quality deteriorate or low volume. You might as well do it the best way you can. We support doing it the right way and best way possible.”

Learn more about 1871 Dairy. Find them on Facebook. 

1871 Dairy will host tasting events from 9 a.m.-11:30 a.m., April 12, 19 and 26 at Blackberry Market, 405 N. Main St., Glen Ellyn. Tasting will be held every Thursday from 3-5 p.m. at La Spiaza in Wheaton.