KUNA, Idaho — Like many local businesses, Eden Creamery is learning to operate under a new normal, but they say it's not as bleat as it sounds.
"The goats don't know COVID-19 exists, they just chew their cud and produce great milk," Cassie Dayan, owner of Eden Creamery, joked. "We're milking about 45 goats."
Dayan is no stranger to experimenting. She and her husband are both scientists turned self-proclaimed "Curd Nerds."
So how on earth do you go from a science lab to making cheese?
"It was a hobby gone completely out of control," Dayan laughed.
It might surprise you, but Dayan says making cheese isn't too different from the work she's done in the past--as a matter of fact, it made the transition smoother than it curd have been.
"A cheese processing plant is very much like a lab," Dayan said. "I mean, it's very clean, it's very organized, you're dealing with a big vat of milk that you turn into cheese, which is all done by food safe microbes--so it's very similar."
Dayan said farming is hard work, and with restaurants and farmer's markets closed because of COVID-19, she's lost a big chunk of her business--but if you want some of the creamery's products, you don't have to look far.
"We're still making cheese," Dayan said. "We've redone our website so you can order online, and I actually deliver throughout the valley."
Even with all the hardship, Dayan says making a simple, delicious product right here in Idaho is what drives her to keep the farm running.
"We don't put any fillers in our cheese. I mean it's literally milk, bacterial culture, and rennet. That's it," Dayan said.
She's hoping after everything with the pandemic is over, there will be a renewed interest in shopping locally--not just for her business, but for others as well.
"Maybe we can re-evaluate how we're buying, how we're consuming as consumers," Dayan said.
In these unprecedented times, Dayan says it's important for the community to come together and support one another.
"Everybody's learning together," Dayan said. "We just have to learn and adapt, and hopefully, it makes us stronger in the end as a community and as a country."
