For related articles and more information, please visit OCA’s All About Organics page and our Raw Milk page.
WESTVILLE, N.Y. (AP) – “Got milk?” is getting to be a difficult question when it comes to organic.

Because even as more consumers are willing to pay premium prices for organic milk, supermarkets are having trouble keeping it on the shelves as high feed and fuel prices have left some organic dairy farmers unable to keep up with demand.

“The market has surged faster than supply,” said George Siemon, CEO of Wisconsin-based Organic Valley, the nation’s largest cooperative of organic farmers, “and at the same time we had high feed costs reduce supply, so we had a double hit here.”

Organic milk shortages are nothing new. As the milk – which federal regulations require be from cows fed organic feed and free from production-boosting synthetic hormones – rose in popularity during the past decade, there haven’t always been enough farmers to meet demand (it can take three years to transition a conventional dairy farm to organic).