Make your own baby formula with goats milk: Homemade infant formula recipe

This post was most recently updated on May 23rd, 2022

Here is a recipe you can use to make your own baby formula with goats milk. We used our homemade goats milk formula for our babies number three and four, and I really wish I knew about it for my first two babies. I seriously struggled to make enough breast milk. Like really struggled, but the babies also did not do well on cows milk formula. So we needed a goats milk alternative formula recipe that would work for us.

Breastmilk is the gold standard for growing human babies, but sometimes we need a top up, or an alternative option. Donor milk would be my next go-to if you do not have enough breastmilk of your own.

Life and technology has come a long way from evaporated milk, egg yolk and karo syrup (corn syrup) that my father was given in the 60’s. We understand a lot more about nutrition and have a lot more options available to us. 

A lot of money has been put into properly formulating store bought formula, but make no mistake, they are doing this in the cheapest way possible to meet standards while maximizing their profits.

Our journey to using a homemade baby formula recipe

My eldest was hospitalized at 3 1/2 days old for severe dehydration/jaundice and had lost a pound from birth in just 3 days. With her we used commercial formula, and when number two came along we did the same thing.

Number two struggled with terrible reflux and gastro problems which did eventually settle down, but we discovered that cows milk made her terribly bloated as a toddler and the moment she stopped having bottles her sleep at night improved significantly.

My mother got herself some milking goats and started supplying us with goats milk, and Chloe’s tummy stopped being so bloated.

I Found a Homemade Goats Milk Formula Recipe!

When baby number three came along I decided to look into homemade infant formulas without cows milk in them. The one here from Western Price Foundation is very whole-foods and idealistic, but not terribly realistic for a busy mum like myself.

So I kept searching and eventually found one here that was nice and simple. Its macro nutrients are very similar to breast milk and it uses pre-prepared vitamins so that removes a lot of ingredients from the recipe. I altered it to fit what we had and what the baby would actually drink. He thrived on it!

We chose to go with goats milk as my family all tolerate goats milk better than cows milk, and we had a free source!

As the protein levels are too high in straight goats milk for young babies new kidneys you must dilute the milk 50/50 with water. This leaves the other nutrients short so you need to add extra sugar and fats.

Can you use home made goats milk formula for babies under 1 year of age?

Yes!

This recipe is designed to be balanced enough to use from birth right through. Once a baby is 10-12 months or older you can swap to straight goats milk.

Goats milk is much easier to digest than cows milk, and it is perfect to use as a base for a formula recipe. If you have heard of A2 cows milk and how it is better tolerated by many with dairy intolerances, the casein proteins in goats milk is also A2.

Is homemade baby formula safe?

Like commercially prepared formula, the safety of homemade baby formula comes down to two things – how the milk is handled and stored and the quality of the ingredients.

Raw milk is teeming with life, and while it has good probiotic bacteria, it can also get contaminated with bad ones.

Milk needs to be cleanly harvested, chilled immediately and kept chilled right up until warming it to drink. If you cannot guarantee the quality of milk, it is best to pasteurize it. This especially true if you are giving it to immunocompromised or very young babies.

The raw milk issue is something you will need to look into yourself and decide if it is something you want to do. This is a good place to start.

As for the rest of the ingredients – store them according to their packages, use within their use-by dates and measure them carefully. This formula has been carefully calculated to match the requirements of what a baby needs, and my babies did well on it, but you will need to do your own research and check the exact dosing of each product as sometimes products change their recipes. 

Make your own baby formula with goats milk

It is so easy to make your own baby formula from goats milk. you can use fresh goats milk if you have access to it, or canned dried goats milk powder. Making infant formula from fresh milk is preferred as it is less processed, but the dried or fresh canned milk is standardised and safe to use as well.

Super Easy Homemade Goat’s Milk Infant Formula

• • • Fresh Goats Milk 125ml – less than 3 days old

      OR powdered goats milk made up following the directions on the can.

      Goat milk is a remarkable food in that it more closely resembles the protein, fat, and carbohydrate structure of breast milk than any other naturally occurring milk. If you have any concerns about using raw milk, you can pasteurize it by warming it in a pot following the directions here.

      Even the taurine in goat milk is 20 times that of cow’s milk which is the same ratio found in breast milk. You can used powdered goats milk if you cannot get fresh, simply follow their directions on the can to make up 125ml of milk.

    • Filtered Water 125ml

    • Sugar 1 tbsp. (12 grams)

      Carbohydrates are the main source of energy for baby and there are several choices. I usually used brown sugar as it dissolves easily. Other options are: Lactose, organic raw sugar, organic maple syrup, brown rice syrup. Don’t use honey in infants under 1 year.

    • Coconut Oil ½ tsp (2.5g)

      This is one of nature’s greatest fat sources. Coconut Oil is high in medium chain triglycerides (MCT’s) also found in breastmilk.

    • Grass fed Butter ½ tsp (2.5g)

      Butter contains vitamins A, D and contains conjugated linoleic acid, which is a potent anti-cancer agent, muscle builder, and immunity booster. If you are struggling with a dairy issue, you can sometimes find goats butter.

    • Organic Olive Oil ½ tsp
      

      Delivers more healthy fats, this time in the form of poly and monounsaturated fats and especially the essential fatty acid linoleic acid which is vital in infant nutrition.

    • Blackstrap molasses  ⅛ tsp
      

      High in B vitamins, minerals, and is a natural source of iron. It also can help keep baby from getting constipated so be careful not to give too much or the tsunami of poop will begin.

• Infant probiotic strain  (5 drops, varies by brand)

  Probiotics are naturally present in breast milk and there are several different strains that are perfectly designed for infants look for Bifidobacterium infantis, Bifidobacterium breve, Bifidobacterium longum, and Saccaromyces boulardii and add one daily dose worth to this bottle, following the instructions on the packet for dosing. In ONE bottle per day

• Liquid Infant Vitamins/minerals  ¼ tsp.

  You can also get powders that would work. Follow the daily dose recommendation in the packet. In ONE bottle per day

• Fermented Codliver Oil – ¼ tsp.

  Full of Omega 3’s and DHA and other essential oils for baby’s brain development. In ONE bottle per day

How to make a homemade goats milk formula tips

I would make this up in a double or triple batch, depending on how many feeds we were needing it for in 24 hours, and I would store it pre-divided into bottles as the butter and coconut oil do set hard in the fridge.

To use, simply heat in a mug or bowl full of hot water until the milk is blood warm. The fat does tend to separate so as you are feeding the bottle you might like to pause now and again and give the bottle a good shake.

Discard unused milk once heated and do not store made up formula for more than 48 hours in the fridge. Sterilize bottles in babies under 3 months of age.

Can I use alternative milks for making a DIY formula?

I know there is a big movement towards using plant based milks, but they are absolutely no comparison to animal milks for babies. A baby fed solely on plant milk will fail to thrive and possibly die. Rice milk, coconut milk, oat milk and almond milk should not be given to babies to replace breastmilk. 

Soy milk based commercial infant formula does exist, but I wouldn’t attempt to make this at home as it is more a science experiment than a recipe.

Have you tried homemade formula in your house? Tell me about it in the comments below.

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