Eldred Family

Peter Eldred’s family has been in the dairy business since his father began in 1974 in New York. While looking for another place to start a new dairy, Peter fell in love with Colorado and found out what a great climate it has for cows. So, Peter, his wife Tammie, and their children, Brooke, Sierra and Hunter, packed up and moved to Colorado to build Lost Creek Dairy.

The couple has been together over 20 years and loves being able to raise a family on a dairy farm.

“We love being self-employed and being with family,” said Tammie.

Currently, the Eldreds are milking about 3,900 cows and source their feed from custom farming and share cropping. To optimize sustainability, they have a newer facility and use energy-efficient lighting, recycled water, recycled bedding materials and the manure from their cows to fertilize nearby fields for crop growing.

The Eldreds feel that cow comfort and happiness is paramount.

“Happy cows make more milk,” said Tammie. The family makes sure the cows stay as clean as possible and are well fed. “Well trained employees are also extremely important,” she added. 

In 2014, the family hosted an open house for the farm’s neighbors, so they could come see the facility and meet the dairy farmers, veterinarian and employees.

“We felt it was important to get involved in the community right away,” said Peter. “That way they know who we are and feel good about our contributions to the community.”

“Dairy farming can be a dirty job,” said Tammie, “but there’s more to it than you realize – it is really rewarding.”