Milk-O-Matic A Big Hit in Slovenian Farmers Markets

By Kimberly Hartke | Published: November 5, 2009

New Technology in the Old World Offers Fresh Milk Straight from Farm

by Sylvia P. Onusic, Guest Blogger

Slovenia, on the “Sunny Side of the Alps” is a small country of about two million people located directly east of Italy, south of Austria, and north of Croatia. Slovenia successfully fought a short war for independence from the former Yugoslavia in 1991, joined the European Union (EU) in 2004, and held the Presidency of the EU in 2008.

The capital city, Ljubljana, is a very charming Austro-Hungarian style Old World town, where almost everyone speaks English. The downtown old city hosts a large farmers market (trznica) every weekday and Saturday during the entire year where green grocers, farmers, flower vendors, and local townspeople sell their wares. Whatever is blooming, budding or for picking in the forests shows up at the market. Living in Slovenia for 6 years, I learned a lot about quality of life and a big part of that involves the availability of home made and local foods. Slovenes are also no strangers to raw and fermented foods which are traditional and honored foods. In the market during the fall, raw lacto fermented sauerkraut and its juice, and pickled turnips, have been available for years.

A Traditional Culture Embraces Technological Innovation

A recent addition to the market is a “mlekomat” – an automatic raw milk machine which dispenses non homogenized, non pasteurized milk from cows on Alpine pasture, which are not ever treated with antibiotics. This summer I visited Slovenia and had the opportunity to use the machine and drink the milk. The machine dispenses milk in a variety of quantities, and bottles can be purchased to transport the milk. Patrons also can bring their own containers.

I heard about the presence of the machine in the market and made it my goal to find it when I next visited the market. I located the object in question, walked back and forth quickly, and decided to approach. I was lucky enough to be able to observe a few patrons using the machine. It was truly a delightful experience to watch the machine in action for the first time. Each patron performed the procedure very matter-of-factly, using their container of choice, and then went their way.

See the Milk-O-Matic in Action

For a look at the process on You-Tube, see the operation of the melkomat owned by Potokar Farms by a young, handsome Slovene man who is delighted with the machine.

Click below for the YouTube video:
http://hartkeisonline.com/2009/11/05/milk-o-matic-a-big-hit-in-slovenian-farmers-markets/

State Department International Religious Freedom Report 2009 - Slovenia

The Constitution provides for freedom of religion, and other laws and policies contributed to the generally free practice of religion. The Government generally respected religious freedom in practice. There was no change in the status of respect for religious freedom by the Government during the reporting period.