6 ms·

The Return of the Milkman

52 points by RickJWagner 6y ago

vondur 6y ago
It always seemed cool to me from the old TV shows to see the Milk Man making deliveries. Add some other staples like Bread and Eggs and I could see them making a comeback.
tartoran 6y ago
I hope to see this trend come back. We pre-order milk and vegetables from an Amish farmers market and pick it up at a drop off location in our neighborhood. The quality is so good that we don't mind paying an extra bit more, it is actually not a lot more expensive but one has to commit to order and pick it up in specific location so this particular setup won't work for everyone.
volkadav 6y ago
Any other RED MEAT comic fans in here thinking "I hate you, Milkman Dan!" reflexively upon reading that headline? :)
- seany 6y ago
  "One of my coworkers at the dairy told me a joke at lunch today that was so hilarious it made cottage cheese shoot out me nose. More disturbingly, though... I wasn't eating cottage cheese at the time."
nemo1618 6y ago
My milkman service has been a godsend during quarantine. They missed a week early on while testing all their drivers, but other than that it's been flawless. I get fresh milk, bread, eggs, even ice cream delivered every week. They don't offer everything, but Amazon and the rare Instacart order fill in the gaps. Highly highly recommended (if there's such a service in your area, and they're still accepting new customers)!
noodlesUK 6y ago
I loved having a milkman when I lived in an area where they were available. It was a bit tricky in the summer months sometimes as I’m a late riser, but having twice weekly deliveries of basic essentials that I didn’t have to think about really reduced the number of times I needed to go shopping. Now because of covid I have to do amazon/whole foods orders to get my groceries, and it’s a massive pain. I’m mostly ordering the same things each time, but the website is slow (to add things to cart etc) and it takes me 20 min or so to order all the things. I wish I could have a repeat order of simple things and then just add on whatever else I needed.
twic 6y ago
Well, that's certainly one way to address the decline in birth rates.
chihuahua 6y ago
We signed up with Smith Brothers Farms last fall. It was good before COVID and it's even better now. We get milk, cream, eggs, and carrots every week.
Throwaway8588 6y ago
I don’t want some Not so bright hick with a gun knowing where I live.
noHicks 6y ago
I dont want some hick with a gun who couldn’t finish school knowing where I live.
seesawtron 6y ago
Have people also started growing vegetables and herbs at home as their creative projects? Unfortunately basics of agricultural farming are not part of school curriculum. I wonder if that was so at some point in the past. Wouldn't it be so great if everyone of us knew the basics of farming like we know basic maths? It could in theory result in growing more plants (good for environment), getting some fresh vegetables or fruits every now and then, a past time activity to enhance one's mental health by getting to work with your hands and creating something from bare minimum?
- floren 6y ago
  I've heard that there are a lot more people planting gardens this year, yes. I'm not doing more than some beans and peppers due to previous experience with our desert summers, but if I was somewhere more temperate / water-rich, I'd definitely be doing it. My high school had an FFA chapter that had a small garden behind the shop building; students with room at home would also raise sheep, cattle, and hogs. There weren't a lot of people in FFA, though. I think gardening, at the very least, would be a good addition to the curriculum... ideally I'd like to see all students taking at least one home economics / shop type course every year beginning in middle school, but if wishes were horses...
- nxc18 6y ago
  Its been trendy to start gardening since the beginning of covid, at least anecdotally (I've ramped up my container gardening) and from what I hear on podcasts. The 'Victory Garden' in particular is a trendy concept and I'm all for it. My one concern about this as a food source is that if you don't have soil (in other words, you have to buy it and put in containers, then amend heavily) I suspect this is vastly more expensive and worse for the environment than buying from farms. The quality is fantastic though - tomatoes from the store make me gag, but fresh off the vine the ones I grow are delicious. It is also very good for mental health.
  - HeyLaughingBoy 6y ago
    Sounds like a pretty good tradeoff to me.
mattkevan 6y ago
Since the lockdown our local milkman has been a lifeline - milk, eggs, bread, veg and meat delivered reliably every few days when every other home delivery company had buckled under the load. Made getting through the first few weeks so much less stressful.
nxc18 6y ago
This is wonderful, and with the advent of the internet/easy telecommunication, it would be great to be able to order additional things as part of the delivery. I'm particularly interested in the reduction of packaging waste that this would enable. I've got a local jam maker who creates truly wonderful products. She delivers and also can re-use jars; its one or two steps away from being a milkman type deal. Farmers markets are a great way to find vendors who can do this, at least in my little part of socal. I've got a nut guy, a baker, and a jam maker and I love supporting these kinds of local operations.
- enumjorge 6y ago
  I agree that our current situation might mean the milkman model is relevant again, and it would be interesting to see how tech could assist! But if I see some VC-backed startup try to do “gig economy for milk” I swear to god...
  - nxc18 6y ago
    I very strongly agree with this sentiment. I was thinking more along the lines of a google sheet where you can check off what you want delivered. No need to complicate things.
seesawtron 6y ago
I have also seen people going to local farms to pick their own fruits and vegetables. This is because of the lack of workers who were not allowed to travel during the harvest season because of border restrictions in Germany. Not sure if that's good for the workers in the long run.
shanecleveland 6y ago
We have had milk delivery in our area for many years, and much more than milk. We love it. A larger operation: https://www.smithbrothersfarms.com https://www.smithbrothersfarms.com
disillusioned 6y ago
Our local dairy (https://www.danzeisendairy.com/ https://www.danzeisendairy.com/) just started this and my wife jumped on it as quickly as possible. They've already been selling milk in glass bottles since they started selling through grocery stores here about three years ago, with deposits, but now since pandemic, they've expanded to include home delivery routes, and it's pretty great. We can get eggs and milk and bottled cold brew and other goodies delivered on a bi-weekly basis. Since we're in Phoenix, they just have us leave out a cooler out front with ice packs in it the night before (since their delivery window is 4a-8:30a). Our old house had a milk door, but sadly our new (1921, but new to us) house does not. Still pretty nice way to support the local operation!
- bluedino 6y ago
  How much is it? I know milk sales are way down in general but maybe on the high end there's some growth. I assume that in the days of the milkman, it was working class prices, but I wasn't around back then so I don't know.
  - TylerE 6y ago
    It's expensive. Each delivery is $9.99, and then the milk is $3.49/half gallon. Around here (NC), at the local grocer, the store brand "regular" mile is $2.39/GALLON, and even the fancy local creamery sells milk for $5/gal.
  - dan-robertson 6y ago
    I wonder what kind of economies of scale there are. A lower price can surely be charged if everyone in several nearby streets is getting their milk delivered by the same company. There do still exist places in the U.K. with milk deliveries and it seems to work pretty well. People generally leave out empty bottles in a basket with some dial set to request how much they want. The idea appeals to me. It intuitively feels less wasteful (but plastic is very low energy to produce compared to glass and it might not actually be that bad to put plastic bottles straight into landfill), and I’m not sensitive to the price or particulars of the milk (except that it is milk and not some kind of white-coloured water). Maybe it would be too expensive still. Or maybe people would care too much about getting certain brands of milk.
dillonmckay 6y ago
I wish this was still a printed magazine.
gumby 6y ago
Even though the last dairy in Palo Alto shut down a few decades ago (and we are down to two creameries) milk delivery was revived about 15 years ago. Milk products and eggs. Pretty convenient when you have A teen ager at home, even before the virus. Plus they are just nice folks. When kiddo was small they took him for a spin on the truck which is designed for quick-on-quick-off so isn’t controlled like a regular vehicle.
esperent 6y ago
Milkmen used to deliver milk daily because people didn't have refrigerators. Now we do, delivery just for dairy seems redundant. I'd much rather have a range of foods delivered to me a couple of times a week - fruit, veg, salads, vegetables, eggs, and so on, rather than just dairy.
- ghaff 6y ago
  We actually had milk delivery for a time when I was growing up. But, yeah, we pretty much just got milk delivered and I assume it cost more than the grocery store. My parents still got it for a time because my brother and I did drink a lot of milk so it maybe saved a trip to the store. Probably cant get it delivered but there may be a CSA around where you live for vegetables, etc.
  - Melting_Harps 6y ago
    > Probably cant get it delivered but there may be a CSA around where you live for vegetables, etc. CSA's are a good option, but in addition to them in Colorado we've had Milk Delivery going strong for a while via Royal Crest Dairy, who also will deliver other things like bread, eggs, bacon, pizza kits: https://www.royalcrestdairy.com/ https://www.royalcrestdairy.com/ It was so successful it got more players into the space outside of Denver and there are a handful of them still delivering during pandemic. I don't drink animal based milk anymore as its pretty harsh on my immune system and allergies, I was quite find of raw milk when I was farming, so I have no use for these services; but it is a cool story in how localized food supply chains can prove to be resilient despite pandemics. But also a reminder how everything old will eventually become 'new' again given enough time out of the limelight.
- alanbernstein 6y ago
  Watch out for Trashless, "the milkman for everything", it may expand to your area if you're in the US. I'm not affiliated, but I'm a happy customer of the locally-sourced, minimal-packaging, meal kit delivery service from the same company. I hope they succeed at both this business model, and at inspiring others to do the same.
stevekemp 6y ago
In the UK when I was a child, late 70s, early 80s, it was really common to see battery-powered delivery vehicles. The milk floats were definitely ahead of their time: "In August 1967, the UK Electric Vehicle Association put out a press release stating that Britain had more battery-electric vehicles on its roads than the rest of the world put together." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milk_float https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milk_float

52 points by RickJWagner 6y ago

It always seemed cool to me from the old TV shows to see the Milk Man making deliveries. Add some other staples like Bread and Eggs and I could see them making a comeback.

tartoran 6y ago

I hope to see this trend come back. We pre-order milk and vegetables from an Amish farmers market and pick it up at a drop off location in our neighborhood. The quality is so good that we don't mind paying an extra bit more, it is actually not a lot more expensive but one has to commit to order and pick it up in specific location so this particular setup won't work for everyone.

volkadav 6y ago

Any other RED MEAT comic fans in here thinking "I hate you, Milkman Dan!" reflexively upon reading that headline? :)

seany 6y ago
"One of my coworkers at the dairy told me a joke at lunch today that was so hilarious it made cottage cheese shoot out me nose. More disturbingly, though... I wasn't eating cottage cheese at the time."

nemo1618 6y ago

My milkman service has been a godsend during quarantine. They missed a week early on while testing all their drivers, but other than that it's been flawless. I get fresh milk, bread, eggs, even ice cream delivered every week. They don't offer everything, but Amazon and the rare Instacart order fill in the gaps. Highly highly recommended (if there's such a service in your area, and they're still accepting new customers)!

noodlesUK 6y ago

I loved having a milkman when I lived in an area where they were available. It was a bit tricky in the summer months sometimes as I’m a late riser, but having twice weekly deliveries of basic essentials that I didn’t have to think about really reduced the number of times I needed to go shopping. Now because of covid I have to do amazon/whole foods orders to get my groceries, and it’s a massive pain. I’m mostly ordering the same things each time, but the website is slow (to add things to cart etc) and it takes me 20 min or so to order all the things. I wish I could have a repeat order of simple things and then just add on whatever else I needed.

twic 6y ago

Well, that's certainly one way to address the decline in birth rates.

chihuahua 6y ago

We signed up with Smith Brothers Farms last fall. It was good before COVID and it's even better now. We get milk, cream, eggs, and carrots every week.

Throwaway8588 6y ago

I don’t want some Not so bright hick with a gun knowing where I live.

noHicks 6y ago

I dont want some hick with a gun who couldn’t finish school knowing where I live.

seesawtron 6y ago

Have people also started growing vegetables and herbs at home as their creative projects? Unfortunately basics of agricultural farming are not part of school curriculum. I wonder if that was so at some point in the past. Wouldn't it be so great if everyone of us knew the basics of farming like we know basic maths? It could in theory result in growing more plants (good for environment), getting some fresh vegetables or fruits every now and then, a past time activity to enhance one's mental health by getting to work with your hands and creating something from bare minimum?

floren 6y ago
I've heard that there are a lot more people planting gardens this year, yes. I'm not doing more than some beans and peppers due to previous experience with our desert summers, but if I was somewhere more temperate / water-rich, I'd definitely be doing it. My high school had an FFA chapter that had a small garden behind the shop building; students with room at home would also raise sheep, cattle, and hogs. There weren't a lot of people in FFA, though. I think gardening, at the very least, would be a good addition to the curriculum... ideally I'd like to see all students taking at least one home economics / shop type course every year beginning in middle school, but if wishes were horses...
nxc18 6y ago
Its been trendy to start gardening since the beginning of covid, at least anecdotally (I've ramped up my container gardening) and from what I hear on podcasts. The 'Victory Garden' in particular is a trendy concept and I'm all for it. My one concern about this as a food source is that if you don't have soil (in other words, you have to buy it and put in containers, then amend heavily) I suspect this is vastly more expensive and worse for the environment than buying from farms. The quality is fantastic though - tomatoes from the store make me gag, but fresh off the vine the ones I grow are delicious. It is also very good for mental health.
- HeyLaughingBoy 6y ago
  Sounds like a pretty good tradeoff to me.

mattkevan 6y ago

Since the lockdown our local milkman has been a lifeline - milk, eggs, bread, veg and meat delivered reliably every few days when every other home delivery company had buckled under the load. Made getting through the first few weeks so much less stressful.

nxc18 6y ago

This is wonderful, and with the advent of the internet/easy telecommunication, it would be great to be able to order additional things as part of the delivery. I'm particularly interested in the reduction of packaging waste that this would enable. I've got a local jam maker who creates truly wonderful products. She delivers and also can re-use jars; its one or two steps away from being a milkman type deal. Farmers markets are a great way to find vendors who can do this, at least in my little part of socal. I've got a nut guy, a baker, and a jam maker and I love supporting these kinds of local operations.

enumjorge 6y ago
I agree that our current situation might mean the milkman model is relevant again, and it would be interesting to see how tech could assist! But if I see some VC-backed startup try to do “gig economy for milk” I swear to god...
- nxc18 6y ago
  I very strongly agree with this sentiment. I was thinking more along the lines of a google sheet where you can check off what you want delivered. No need to complicate things.

seesawtron 6y ago

I have also seen people going to local farms to pick their own fruits and vegetables. This is because of the lack of workers who were not allowed to travel during the harvest season because of border restrictions in Germany. Not sure if that's good for the workers in the long run.

shanecleveland 6y ago

We have had milk delivery in our area for many years, and much more than milk. We love it. A larger operation: https://www.smithbrothersfarms.com https://www.smithbrothersfarms.com

disillusioned 6y ago

Our local dairy (https://www.danzeisendairy.com/ https://www.danzeisendairy.com/) just started this and my wife jumped on it as quickly as possible. They've already been selling milk in glass bottles since they started selling through grocery stores here about three years ago, with deposits, but now since pandemic, they've expanded to include home delivery routes, and it's pretty great. We can get eggs and milk and bottled cold brew and other goodies delivered on a bi-weekly basis. Since we're in Phoenix, they just have us leave out a cooler out front with ice packs in it the night before (since their delivery window is 4a-8:30a). Our old house had a milk door, but sadly our new (1921, but new to us) house does not. Still pretty nice way to support the local operation!

bluedino 6y ago
How much is it? I know milk sales are way down in general but maybe on the high end there's some growth. I assume that in the days of the milkman, it was working class prices, but I wasn't around back then so I don't know.
- TylerE 6y ago
  It's expensive. Each delivery is $9.99, and then the milk is $3.49/half gallon. Around here (NC), at the local grocer, the store brand "regular" mile is $2.39/GALLON, and even the fancy local creamery sells milk for $5/gal.
- dan-robertson 6y ago
  I wonder what kind of economies of scale there are. A lower price can surely be charged if everyone in several nearby streets is getting their milk delivered by the same company. There do still exist places in the U.K. with milk deliveries and it seems to work pretty well. People generally leave out empty bottles in a basket with some dial set to request how much they want. The idea appeals to me. It intuitively feels less wasteful (but plastic is very low energy to produce compared to glass and it might not actually be that bad to put plastic bottles straight into landfill), and I’m not sensitive to the price or particulars of the milk (except that it is milk and not some kind of white-coloured water). Maybe it would be too expensive still. Or maybe people would care too much about getting certain brands of milk.

dillonmckay 6y ago

I wish this was still a printed magazine.

gumby 6y ago

Even though the last dairy in Palo Alto shut down a few decades ago (and we are down to two creameries) milk delivery was revived about 15 years ago. Milk products and eggs. Pretty convenient when you have A teen ager at home, even before the virus. Plus they are just nice folks. When kiddo was small they took him for a spin on the truck which is designed for quick-on-quick-off so isn’t controlled like a regular vehicle.

esperent 6y ago

Milkmen used to deliver milk daily because people didn't have refrigerators. Now we do, delivery just for dairy seems redundant. I'd much rather have a range of foods delivered to me a couple of times a week - fruit, veg, salads, vegetables, eggs, and so on, rather than just dairy.

ghaff 6y ago
We actually had milk delivery for a time when I was growing up. But, yeah, we pretty much just got milk delivered and I assume it cost more than the grocery store. My parents still got it for a time because my brother and I did drink a lot of milk so it maybe saved a trip to the store. Probably cant get it delivered but there may be a CSA around where you live for vegetables, etc.
- Melting_Harps 6y ago
  > Probably cant get it delivered but there may be a CSA around where you live for vegetables, etc. CSA's are a good option, but in addition to them in Colorado we've had Milk Delivery going strong for a while via Royal Crest Dairy, who also will deliver other things like bread, eggs, bacon, pizza kits: https://www.royalcrestdairy.com/ https://www.royalcrestdairy.com/ It was so successful it got more players into the space outside of Denver and there are a handful of them still delivering during pandemic. I don't drink animal based milk anymore as its pretty harsh on my immune system and allergies, I was quite find of raw milk when I was farming, so I have no use for these services; but it is a cool story in how localized food supply chains can prove to be resilient despite pandemics. But also a reminder how everything old will eventually become 'new' again given enough time out of the limelight.
alanbernstein 6y ago
Watch out for Trashless, "the milkman for everything", it may expand to your area if you're in the US. I'm not affiliated, but I'm a happy customer of the locally-sourced, minimal-packaging, meal kit delivery service from the same company. I hope they succeed at both this business model, and at inspiring others to do the same.

stevekemp 6y ago

In the UK when I was a child, late 70s, early 80s, it was really common to see battery-powered delivery vehicles. The milk floats were definitely ahead of their time: "In August 1967, the UK Electric Vehicle Association put out a press release stating that Britain had more battery-electric vehicles on its roads than the rest of the world put together." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milk_float https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milk_float