This New Jersey Farm Turns Water Buffalo Milk Into Incredibly Creamy Mozzarella
Water buffalo milk sounds like a curious detail until mozzarella enters the conversation. Then it becomes the whole reason to pay attention.
New Jersey has a family-run farm where the cheese begins close to the animals producing the milk, keeping the story unusually connected to the land.
That makes the finished product feel less anonymous.
Richer milk can give the mozzarella a distinctive texture and character, while the uncommon herd adds another reason to visit.
Who would have thought one cheese could make farm life this interesting?
Sometimes a familiar food becomes far more compelling once you understand where it actually begins.
How A Dream Became Pasture
Back in 2004, a couple with no farming background bought seven acres in Washington Township. They raised heirloom tomatoes, goats, and sheep, testing what might actually work.
Courtney had always pictured farm life, even though she never grew up near one. Brian came along for the ride, and together they chased something unusual.
The pair needed a product that would stand apart at crowded farmers’ markets. Water buffalo answered that question in a way nothing else could.
They flew to Campania, Italy, to learn traditional buffalo herding and cheesemaking firsthand. That trip shaped everything they do today.
In 2010, the Foleys bought a 62-acre preserved farm in Asbury from the New Jersey Conservation Foundation, giving their growing herd a permanent home in the Musconetcong River Valley.
Because the property was permanently preserved for agriculture, its farming history can continue. The land has operated as a working farm since the late 1800s.
That history remains practical rather than decorative, with pasture and farm buildings still supporting an active agricultural operation.
New Jersey has plenty of preserved farmland, but few places use it this creatively. You will find it at 247 Cemetery Hill Rd, Washington, NJ 07882.
Meet The Two Hundred Neighbors
More than 200 water buffalo make up the current herd, with the animals raised on pasture in the Musconetcong Valley.
Riverine’s River Friendly Farm profile says animals raised for meat receive no growth stimulants or antibiotics.
On hot days, the Foleys have used hoses to cool the buffalo rather than relying on mud wallows.
Riverine says smaller herds help keep the animals calmer and allow more individual care, a philosophy the farm believes is reflected in what they produce.
Every animal on the farm has a name and birthdate, and Brian Foley still knows the buffalo individually.
These creatures are curious and social by nature. Give them space and they will investigate you as much as you investigate them.
Water buffalo have been domesticated for more than 5,000 years, and the Foleys describe their herd as docile and accustomed to human contact.
People often mix them up with American bison, but the two are entirely different species. Once you see the sweeping horns and slick grey hides, you will never confuse them again.
Milk With Serious Butterfat
Riverine describes its water buffalo milk as rich, creamy, and smooth in texture. The butterfat content is high, and that richness carries into everything made from it.
Nutritionally, buffalo milk brings more protein than cow’s milk. It also runs lower in cholesterol, which surprises plenty of first-time buyers.
Cheesemakers care about yield, and this is where buffalo milk shines. About five kilograms produces one kilogram of mozzarella.
Cow’s milk needs roughly eight kilograms for the same result. Higher milk solids give buffalo milk a strong cheesemaking yield advantage.
Mozzarella gets the headlines, but the dairy list runs much longer. Yogurt, kefir, paneer, labneh, and ricotta all appear.
Caciocavallo and farmstead aged cheese currently broaden the lineup beyond Riverine’s fresh cheeses.
Mango lassi is part of the current dairy lineup, alongside milk, yogurt, kefir, labneh, paneer, ricotta, and several cheeses.
Water buffalo dairy remains uncommon in the United States, and Riverine currently sells its milk and other products directly through its own shop and market channels.
Stretching Curds The Old Way
Mozzarella belongs to a family of cheeses called pasta filata, meaning spun paste. The curd gets stretched and molded by hand into its final shape.
Both owners took multiple cheesemaking classes before selling a single ball. Skill like this does not arrive by accident.
Riverine makes its dairy in small batches after studying traditional cheesemaking in Campania, but its current public materials do not spell out every processing step used for its mozzarella.
A starter culture goes in next, followed by rennet to form the curd. The curd is cut, cooked, and finally stretched.
Buffalo milk’s higher calcium, protein, fat, and total-solids content contributes to its strong cheesemaking performance and higher yield.
Everything at Riverine Ranch happens in small batches. Nobody is rushing a conveyor belt here.
My favorite technical detail involves a direct line running from the milking parlor to the cheese vat. The milk barely sees the outside world before it becomes cheese.
Freshness like that is hard to replicate at scale. It is the reason small creameries still matter.
Small By Choice, Careful By Nature
A phrase guides everything on this property: small by choice, careful by nature. It means quality beats quantity, always.
Riverine says that philosophy means staying small, going slow, and focusing on quality while caring for both the herd and the land.
Riverine has been River Friendly Farm certified since 2016, a program that evaluates soil health, nutrient and pest management, farmstead practices, and waterway protection and conservation.
Buffalo graze wide pastures and eat hay grown right on the farm. Feed does not travel far.
Manure gets composted rather than wasted. It returns to the fields, rebuilding soil and feeding the next season of grass.
Water buffalo suit the New Jersey landscape remarkably well. Wet ground does not bother them at all.
They happily eat plants that cattle refuse, which makes them useful for managing overgrown land. That appetite has real ecological value.
Riverine says its buffalo have participated in wetland restoration projects around New Jersey, taking advantage of their ability to thrive in wet conditions and graze plants cattle often avoid.
Riverine emphasizes small-batch production and says its products are made on the farm under its supervision.
Sausages, Steaks And Surprises
In a 2020 interview, Riverine said dairy made up about 70 percent of sales and meat about 30 percent.
Riverine currently sells water buffalo burgers along with other cuts and sausages, describing the meat as naturally lean.
Current offerings include Sicilian-style hot and sweet Italian sausages, burgers, stew meat, and other rotating meat cuts.
Water buffalo meat is lean, low in fat, and low in cholesterol. It also delivers solid amounts of vitamins and minerals.
Because it is so lean, it cooks faster than you expect. Pull it off the heat earlier than you would beef.
Male buffalo on the property receive the same care and comfortable conditions as the milking females. Nothing about their raising is an afterthought.
The dairy side keeps expanding alongside the meat. Yogurts, kefir, paneer, and farm-aged cheeses all rotate through.
If you visit expecting only mozzarella, you will leave with a cooler full of things you never planned to buy. Consider yourself warned.
Planning Your Farm Stop
Working farms run on schedules that do not always match tourist hours. Chores come first, visitors come second.
Appointments are the safest way to arrange a stop. Dropping by on chance sometimes works, though nothing is promised.
Riverine does not currently publish fixed public visiting hours; farm visits are by appointment or sometimes by chance, with availability not guaranteed.
Anyone exploring the Musconetcong River Valley is welcome to pull in and say hello. The owners enjoy meeting food lovers and fellow farmers.
Facilities are being improved and the creamery is expanding. The goal is a fuller visitor experience down the road.
They picture families, chefs, students, and curious travelers all learning here. That vision is already taking shape.
Cannot reach the farm itself? Riverine currently appears at Union Square Greenmarket and 79th Street Greenmarket, while its products also reach restaurants and specialty shops across the Northeast.
Other GrowNYC Greenmarkets carry the products too, along with select restaurants. Online ordering ships directly to customers.
Bring a cooler regardless of where you buy. Fresh dairy does not enjoy a warm car ride, and neither will you.
Awards And Bigger Ambitions
Recognition arrived in 2025 at the United States Championship Cheese Contest. A Silver Award came home in the soft and semi-soft mixed milk cheeses category.
The national contest placed Riverine among dairy producers from across the country, with the farm earning Silver in its category.
Growth plans keep moving forward. Direct-to-consumer sales are now an established part of Riverine’s business, with nationwide shipping alongside farmers markets, restaurants, and specialty shops.
Riverine’s current lineup spans fresh and aged cheeses, yogurt, kefir, labneh, paneer, lassi, milk, and meat products, with availability changing by product and season.
Building something that lasts for generations sits at the center of the plan. A preserved property makes that goal realistic.
The Foleys have long said they would welcome more water buffalo farmers, with Courtney telling New Jersey Monthly that she hoped others would enter the field.
With Riverine currently describing itself as one of only a handful of U.S. water buffalo farms, the category remains highly uncommon nationally.
Riverine Ranch has turned an unusual farming idea into a working, award-winning operation, with more than 200 buffalo and a growing range of farmstead products.
