MURFREESBORO, TN — In its first venture at the Main Street Murfreesboro Saturday Market at the Historic Rutherford County Courthouse, the MTSU Creamery completely sold out of milk.
And alumnus Jonathan Harmon of Murfreesboro may know why: “This is my favorite. … There’s nothing like it on the
planet,” the National Alumni Association board member said after purchasing a half-gallon of chocolate milk to take to Cookeville, Tennessee, and two pints of chocolate and one pint of whole white milk for friends Elicia, McCoy and Judson Fortner to drink right then.
The Creamery will participate all summer at the market, which will operate from 8 a.m. to noon every Saturday through Sept. 26, joining about 50 vendors altogether selling fruits and vegetables, flowers, meat, bread and jams, jellies and honey and more.
Gracie Hobbs of Murfreesboro, an MTSU alumna who graduated in December 2019 with an animal science degree, carried two half-gallons and three pints of chocolate milk away from where the Creamery crew was selling the milk.
“I get it for my friends,” said Hobbs, who added she gives it “a 10 out of 10” on the top-rated scale. “I like the fact they add jersey milk. That’s what makes it so creamy.” She also noted the perfect ingredients of cocoa, sugar, salt and vanilla.
A steady stream of customers lined up at the southeast corner of the square on Church Street most of the morning. The Creamery sold out around 10:30 a.m.
Matthew Wade, MTSU Farm Laboratories director, reported the Creamery sold 400 pints of chocolate milk, 141 half-gallons of chocolate milk, gallons, 40 gallons of whole white milk and 61 whole white pints.
Student worker Scott Ayers, rising junior College of Business supply team management major, twice returned to campus — once for whole white milk and a short time later for the extremely popular chocolate milk.
“I told him to get whatever we had left,” Wade said. “This was incredibly successful. We had to run back twice to get more milk.”
MTSU rising senior recording industry major Matt Benson and his wife, Heather, each bought two pints. He has had the chocolate milk many times. It was her first time to taste the chocolate, and replied, “That’s pretty good. It’s very creamy.”
School of Agriculture Director Jessica Carter and College of Basic and Applied Sciences Dean Bud Fischer stopped by to lend a hand at the Creamery table. Fisher calls it “the best chocolate milk in the country.”
The Creamery, which started in 2017, is part of the MTSU School of Agriculture’s dairy at the farm in Lascassas, Tennessee, and milk processing plant in back of the Stark Agriculture Center on campus.
