I visited Hansen's a couple of weeks ago with my boyfriend and his family. His parents said that we were going to a farm to milk a cow, so I decided to join them. When we got there, I wasn't sure what to expect. Everything looked okay, and we were lured by all the ice cream flavors, so I was not prepared for what was to come. We jumped on an open air vehicle to begin our tour. We stopped at the place where they have the cows all separated by age: calves, younger ones, and adults. We were first given the opportunity to feed the babies, which is when my horror began. I had the chance to feed a five-day old calf that was HORRIFIED. I didn't want to play into this game at first, but I overheard that the calf was being a brat; rather than allowing others to make it more scared, I decided to step in to bottle feed it. I learned that the cows are taken from their mothers at birth so they don't attach, and the tour guide had the nerve to tell is that their moms don't care. I get that this is standard practice at milk factories, but please don't insult our intelligence. Then we move on to the factory part, where we see the cows lined up and attached to the devices that are milking them. My horror grew. We learned there about the artificial insemination, got to see some cows not wanting to be herded in, and our tour guide saying they "should get over it," as it will be over in a few minutes. And of course, this is where the tour group is invited to milk one of the cows. I couldn't do it, but the rest of my group was happy to do so. I know that what I saw isn't likely even close to the horrors of the milking practices of most milk factories, but this was enough to make me want to cry. Then we moved on to another part of the farm, where the cows are kept in filthy and crowded conditions. We were told that they prefer to be in there and not roam because they don't feel safe roaming in pastures... what?! I couldn't do it anymore; I had to step away. Then they showed us their kangaroo collection. I don't know much about kangaroos, so nothing to say here about whether or not this was a happy situation. The kangaroos were just lying there looking bored or hot. The tour ended by us trying their ice cream, cheese curds, and butter (which they had us make). This part would have been fun, had I not been traumatized already. Again, I can imagine that this is the "nice" version of what happens in most milk factories, so thank you, Hansen's for giving me a glimpse. read more

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We took our two grandchildren, aged 3 and 5. They absolutely loved the kangaroos, chocolate milk and the ice cream that was included in the ticket price. They also enjoyed bottle feeding the calves, the cheese curds and wagyu beef sticks. The 5 year old even milked a cow! It was a very well run tour! They had tables set up with our names ready to wait for everyone to arrive. They also gave out crayons and sheets for the children to color. We then loaded up on a tractor drawn trolley to take us to the farm. Our large group was divided into two groups. 1/2 went to the kangaroos and the other 1/2 to the calves. We were given slices of bread to feed the kangaroos. It was fun for the adults too, lol! When then moved on to bottle feed the calves, then visit the heifers and then the milking room. We were provided with some very interesting facts as we went along. We then visited with their 2 one year old female kangaroos. Super cute! We loaded up on the trolley to return to the main building. There they provided us with a choice of whole milk or chocolate milk, plates of curds and beef sticks. They also had jars of heavy cream for us to make butter. 5-6 minutes of shaking and we had butter! We then were able choose from around 20 flavors of ice cream. Very delicious! We watched a video on the making of their products and had the chance to purchase items. This was the second time we had visited the dairy in the last 2 years. This was just as enjoyable as the first time. I highly recommend this for anyone with young children! Or even adults! We'll take the grands again in a couple of years. Thank you for a wonderful time Hansen family! read more

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We had a great day date. Learned about a working family farm and petting the kangaroos was so fun. We will be looking for their products in stores now! I would recommend this to all ages & occasions. read more

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We had a great tour. Small groups with individual attention. My grandson is almost 4. He loved feeding the calf, milking the cow and petting the kangaroos. The farm tour was a little long for him at his age but again it was great. Knowledgeable tour guides! read more

It was on my bucket list to feed and pet a baby calf and I got to experience this on my 48th birthday. What a great time and for a very reasonable price. The weather was perfect and loved getting to try items made on the farm. I have been recommending this place to anyone who will listen..lol. Can't wait to visit the farm again! read more

This was such an amazing, family friendly adventure! We brought our 4.5 month old and 10.5 year old daughter and it was a blast. We will definitely be back! I loved how they had a changing table in the restroom also. read more

We took our 18 months grandaughter on the farm tour. What a lovely way to spend the afternoon. The tour center was very clean, the cows were very well cared for as well as all the animal areas. The Kangaroos were magical! So kind and soft. The tasting of their products at the end was so cool. We even got to make Butter! Our guides Carey, and the other girl were great, friendly, very knowledgeable about the farm. There was a short movie show showing what they couldn't show us while we ate Hansens yummy products. I will take my Grandaughter back when she gets a bit older. I've been to other dairy farms and was disgusted at how dirty the farm and cows were, but Hansens was lovely. read more

I took my grandkids here for a breakfast event. The price was very reasonable. It was $33 for the four of us. Unfortunately the weather didn't cooperate, it was cold and rainy, but the fun was not hindered in the least. When we got there, we were greeted by someone in a kangaroo costume handing out candy which really got the kids in the mood. While we werevstandung in line to get our food, one of the owners chatted with my 4 year old grandson telling him about the farm. The breakfast was served buffet style with ham, pancakes, cornbread muffins, yogurt with granola, apples slices, and an assortment beverages which included their delicious milk. In the garagevwhere we dined, they had grace painting and a picture prop for the kids with a kangaroo with a cow in it's pouch for them to put their faces in the picture. We then boarded the wagon to be taken to the barns. On the journey one of the family members told us about the farm and how it was run. When we got to the barns there were games for the kids to get prizes. The chocolate milk flavored lip gloss was a hit. They also had an old fashioned corn shelled for them to play with and they got to twist twine into a rope. We continued on to the barns where they fell in love with the new born calves. Most about a month old. My grand-daughter was thrilled to find a chocolate cow(it was brown) and they really had fun petting and interacting with them. We got to go out to see the kangaroos but couldn't go in to play with them because of the weather. They were ecstatic to watch the pregnant one and see her pouch moving with the new baby in it. Hansen's dairy is truly a great interactive place for kids as well as being educational. We hope to make it back on a nice day to spend more time. read more

Hansen's Dairy Farm - Hudson - Lived the kangaroos - Food Tours Near Me - Hudson, Iowa

A tour well worth the cost, interesting and fun for all ages. We learned and experienced so much in a short time. Make you you prepare kids in advance about what farms are about and expect smells and dirt but also direct contact with the animals, hands-on fun making milking cows and making butter, plus eating delicious ice cream. Tour guides are knowledgable, kind, and accommodating. read more

I love the tour they give and especially the butter at the dairy farm. They have ice cream and milk. read more

We had a fabulous tour yesterday with our antique car club. Hansen's was incredibly accommodating to our requests. We must have been there on the chilliest day this month, and they were prepared with blankets and hats to offer us. They went above and beyond to make us comfortable. The tour was fantastic, the ice cream was delicious, and petting the baby kangaroo was just a fabulous experience. I highly, highly recommend a visit! read more

Much more than just a dairy farm! Hansen's Dairy is located in rural Iowa outside of the small town of Hudson. It is advertised as dairy, but is really so much more. Upon arriving, one can look upon the green prairies and a beautiful blue lake. The actual store is full of dairy goods made on site. This includes six varieties of fresh cheese curds, milk (skim, 1%, 2%, whole, and 1% chocolate), heavy whipping cream, and house made ice cream in 20 flavors. Also sold are various products from local businesses/farms. The prices are very reasonable, as the company also has two retail locations and sells their goods in local grocery stores. Best of all, the farm offers a $15 tour. At first, one might think that $15 is too much for a farm tour. However, the tour includes a brief history of the farm, milking a cow, touring the processing facility, feeding a calf, and viewing the cows up close. But wait, you also get to not only see, but pet their kangaroos. Yes. You heard me right. This dairy farm is home to 5 kangaroos, which makes it very unique. After this, you will return to the main store, where you will be shown a video on farm processes, fed cheese curds, make your own butter, and be given an 8 ounce tub of ice cream. On top of this, the farm also has Wagyu/Holstein mix cows that produce some quality marbled beef. Overall, if you find yourself drifting through eastern Iowa, this is a great place to visit for the day. You can also find their products in Iowa with a kangaroo as their logo. read more

Excellent place to visit with delicious foods! We also took the tour and that was so much fun as well as very educational. We went with a group and they were very friendly and helpful. The kids loved getting to milk a cow and feed the baby cows. This is will a place our kids will always remember. If you're looking for something fun to do with family or friends, we highly recommend scheduling a trip here. read more

Hansen's Dairy Farm - Hudson - So sweet and such a fun experience - Food Tours Near Me - Hudson, Iowa

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A great family day out! We thoroughly enjoyed the petting tour & it was an awesome experience for our 2 year old. We got to make the most delicious butter ever & taste the yummy cheese, milk, & ice cream too. We'll be going back soon! read more

This was an absolute treasure. The baby animals were amazing, the behind the scenes milking tour was terrific, but the free food at the end was the icing on the cake. I can not recommend this enough. You will not be disappointed. #hansensdairyforever read more

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It was Not my idea to visit a dairy farm when I rolled out of bed this morning, but we came to good ole Iowa for our family reunion so when in Rome.... After parking our car we were quickly driven by bus to the Hansen farm. The short drive took us through their crops of corn on what appears to be more than 400 plus acres of land. My attitude quickly changed after listening to our tour guide/Owner, Mrs. Hansen, talk about the history of the farm. The family business has been operating for many years and all the kids (9?) work and live with their extended family on the farm. We happen to stumble upon a cow getting what looked to be a very uncomfortable pedicure, poor cow looked awkward in the makeshift sling. The cows were separated by age, some by gender and some by stages of their pregnancy. They even had a few kangaroos on the farm. No Bulls, but get this, Bulls semen?! yes, that too is stored on the farm. As you can imagine, heifers are manually inseminated with long tube like objects and 9months later, a calf is born. After seeing and learning more than expected, we were driven back to the Hansen Welcome Center for another special treat, all natural, freshly made ice-cream, milk and cheese await us. Yum!! I didn't want to leave, this tour was not just educational but inspiring, I'm So happy I came.. I highly recommend visiting. read more

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What a place ! People are amazing tour was so fun ! The milk, ice cream and cheese were great ! The butter is good to . The kangaroos were so fun ! Thank you Hansen's Farm for making my trip great ! Will be back read more

We did the tour yesterday and it was fun! We drove 2 hours for it and 2 hours back so as it was a great experience, I would not drive 4 hours for it again. I feel like it wasnt as personal as in the past which is not the farms fault at all. For the price, it was worth it, my son got to milk a cow, which is only a couple of squirts per person, bottle feed a calf, which he loved and feed and pet the kangaroos. I wish there would have been more interaction with the kangaroos. At the end, you go back to the clubhouse and make your own butter, they give you milk and you get ice cream, so the price is definitely great for everything you do!! Tour guides were good and informative. read more

The ice cream there is bussin bussin. I sneak 2 scoops when my mom isn't looking shhhhh don't tell it's a secret

Kangaroos on a Dairy Farm in Iowa? Yes!! This tour was informative and fun for me and 2 of my kids. Ice cream samples, cheese curds, milk, making butter, milking cows, it was a great Summer afternoon for us city folks :) read more

Had so much fun and learned a lot of new things... We got to make our own butter and eat some awesome some delicious ice cream. Our guide Maui was awesome ! read more

This one is a no-brainer 5 start rating. We drove almost 2 hours from our campground to take the farm tour and it was simply amazing! We would have driven 6 hours for this. The other reviewers have covered most of what's included, but what made this special was the fact that this is a local, family run (for GENERATIONS) business. Clean, wholesome, no short cuts, no mass production, nothing but the best for their products. Jordan was an outstanding tour guide and genuinely cared about us enjoying the tour and getting answers to all our questions. Honestly, she seemed to be enjoying herself too, despite probably doing this every day. I wish their products were available outside that immediate area - but then again, I really don't. That is what makes this place and their products so special. Local and personal. For the activity packed two-hour tour and all the extras, I think it's cheap at twice the price. THANK YOU for a wonderful experience!!! read more

This is a well run operation. If you don't think too hard and aren't too much of an animal lover, it will provide a very interesting visit, with some hands-on experiences and a couple of goodies to try at the end, too. However, my sister and I left the farm disturbed and saddened by what we saw. Hansen's is obviously better than the purely awful, larger factory 'farms', but don't be deceived into thinking this is anywhere near a natural life for these animals, even with their individual names stapled to their ears. It is all business. From calfs being separated from their mothers at birth so that they never suckle, to the young bulls who are immediately sold off for meat, to the females from 15 months old being artificially inseminated over and over again, to the cows never being able to graze in a field of grass... that is their life at our hands. And once a cow can no longer produce 'the right amount' of milk - around 12+ years - she is then also sold for her meat. Thanks for the insight into the business Hansen's, and you do your best with the way we've ordered our world, but No Thanks. This person is glad that she doesn't need to eat beef or drink cow's milk. read more