Three years ago, while studying yoga and Ayurveda at the Kripalu Center in Stockbridge, MA we began making ghee for our friends, and everyone loved it! We decided to rent a small community kitchen in the Pioneer Valley to offer ghee at the Northampton Farmer’s Market.
We love providing our delicious ghee at local farmers markets and now we want to offer it in stores and restaurants throughout New England. This campaign will allow us to rent a larger community kitchen with adequate equipment so we can meet the rising demand for Full Moon Ghee. We source all of our butter from healthy happy cows in New England. By supporting Full Moon Ghee, you are also supporting local agriculture!
As the demand for local ghee spreads across the Pioneer Valley, we have outgrown our small community kitchen in Greenfield. In hopes of moving to a larger kitchen with adequate equipment, we need your backing.
Increasing production requires us to purchase thousands of glass jars, labels, and of course, more butter. Because we source our butter from local family owned farms, the price is a bit higher, which guarantees the farmer can make a good living.
We are grateful for the opportunity to offer ghee to our community and the greater Northeast. Through our service, we hope to strengthen our collective connection to an ancient tradition rooted in healing and reverence.
Here is information on why we love ghee so much.
What is ghee? Ghee is clarified butter, a lactose-free, shelf-stable, high-heat cooking oil with origins in ancient India. To make our ghee, we begin with butter that comes from healthy, happy Jersey cows in Western Massachusetts. We slowly simmer the butter, removing the moisture, the milk solids, and the impurities. What remains is a pure premium cooking oil: the clarified essence of butter. Our ghee has a rich, sweet, slightly nutty flavor.
What’s the difference between ghee and butter? Ghee is ideal oil for high-heat cooking and it can tolerate heat up to 485 degrees Farenheight, compared with butter and coconut oil which both burn at 350 degrees. Since all of the milk solids have been removed, ghee is lactose and casein free, making it a healthy option for those with dairy sensitivities. Finally, ghee does not have to be refrigerated. It’s shelf stable for up to six months and can last up to a year if kept in the fridge.
What are the benefits of ghee? Ghee is the superfood of India. Since ancient times, this sacred cooking oil has been celebrated for its taste, nutritional benefits, and healing properties. According to Ayurveda, India’s 5,000-year-old medicinal science, ghee is the best oil for the human body. It stimulates digestion, aids the absorption of nutrients, and reduces inflammation, especially in the gut. Ghee lubricates joints, optimizes skin and eye health, and has an alkalizing effect on the entire body. Western medicine increasingly recognizes the many health benefits of ghee:
• Contains full-spectrum short, medium, and long-chain fatty acids
• Contains omega-3 and omega-9 essential fatty acids
• Contains vitamins A, D, E and K
• One of the highest natural sources conjugated linoleic acid (CLA)
• Contains 9 phenolic antioxidants, as well as numerous other minerals.
Why Full Moon Ghee?
• It’s local: Our pure Jersey cow butter is sourced from local farms in Massachusetts where the cows are fed high quality grass, treated ethically, without the use of hormones or antibiotics. Small local dairy farms are rapidly disappearing around the northeast and across the country. By supporting Full Moon Ghee, you are supporting local dairy!
• Artisanal and intentional: We make our ghee in small batches, with attention to each jar. Our process is slow and meticulous—each batch of ghee takes about 12 hours to clarify, cool, and set.
• Honoring Ayurvedic tradition: We cultivate a peaceful or sattvic state of mind and chant mantras while making our ghee. Every batch is infused with intentions of tranquility, vitality, and wellbeing.
• Made on the full moon: Ghee is traditionally made on the waxing or full moon because according to ancient Vedic texts in India, this is an expansive time during the lunar cycle when the essences of plants and animals are drawn upward. Remaining connected to ancient traditions while honoring the cycles of the moon is important to us, so we offer our respect to the cycles of nature by crafting our ghee on the full moon.
Your contributions matter. This is what they will fund:
- $5,000 - we can now purchase the basics: butter, jars, and labels. Woohoo!
- $10,000 - we can now rent the larger community kitchen in Greenfield with adequate ghee-making equipment to meet our demand. Success!
- $14,441 – meeting our goal allows us to cover our licensing, insurance costs and marketing materials. Ghee-topia!
- $14,441+ - we can now offer multiple flavors of medicinal ghee made with Ayurvedic herbs. A dream come true!
The true cost of production and why we need more mooney for Full Moon Ghee:
- $1500 Labels
- $2000 Jars
- $8000 Annual Kitchen Rental
- $1000 Insurance
- $3500 Local Butter
We believe in this project and hope you will, too. Thank you for your support!
Risks and challenges
We have already jumped through our fair share of hurdles with state and town health permits, wholesale licensing, and insurance coverage. Now, we have stores and restaurants ready and waiting to stock their shelves with Full Moon Ghee. Before we can fill those orders, we need to ramp up production. Like the slowly simmered butter, our vision has clarified and we are ready to share it with you. We appreciate your support!
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Funding period
- (31 days)