CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR WINNER CASEY FROM ANNAPOLIS, MD. THANKS FOR ALL YOUR COMMENTS!

We love our producers, suppliers and vendors and we think most of them have some pretty interesting stories behind their products too. We’ll be sharing some of our favorites here in an ongoing series. Read on for a chance to win a $50 gift card.

“We go out to the grocery store wearing our Organic Valley hats and someone will come up to us and say, ‘Oh, I love your stuff, it’s the best, thanks!’ and it feels great.”

In scenic Fairfield, Vermont, young farmers Tyler and Melanie Webb run Stony Pond Farm, an organic dairy farm that supplies milk to Organic Valley. Their road to farming was a little unorthodox. Neither Tyler nor Melanie have a background in farming; they both grew up in suburbs of New York. Tyler’s first interest in farming came from studying anthropology in college. Through taking a soils class, he studied plant and soil science and worked for the government for a few years before taking the leap to start Stony Pond Farm. “Tyler found this farm and it was a rundown old dairy farm that together we brought back to life,” says Melanie.

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CONGRATULATION TO OUR WINNER PATRICIA FROM ANN ARBOR, MI. THANK YOU FOR ALL YOUR GREAT COMMENTS!

We love our producers, suppliers and vendors and we think most of them have some pretty interesting stories behind their products too. We’ll be sharing some of our favorites here in an ongoing series. Read on for a chance to win a $50 gift card.

What does it take to run a creamery? If you’re Jennifer Bice, it takes lots of care, concern and meticulous attention to detail. The organic creamery behind Eros Organic Greek Yogurt, is operated 100% on solar power from two acres of solar panels. Running on these solar panels is “equal to taking 76 cars off the road, planting 110 trees or powering over 50 homes, “ Bice says. “Creameries use tremendous amounts of energy so we’re constantly looking at new ways that we can deliver the product in a more sustainable fashion.” In addition to solar energy, the creamery uses motion-sensored lights that only come on when needed in order to minimize lighting usage, has electric car charging stations (also operated by solar power) and a computer-operated water system that measures the exact amount of water needed to clean their operational equipment.

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CONGRATULATIONS TO OUR WINNER MARY FROM MADISON, WI. THANKS FOR ALL THE COMMENTS!

We love our producers, suppliers and vendors and we think most of them have some pretty interesting stories behind their products too. We’ll be sharing some of our favorites here in an ongoing series. Read on for a chance to win a $50 gift card.

Doug Beretta is a family man. He’s one of four generations in Beretta Family Organic Dairy, a supplier of organic milk for Wallaby Yogurt. The dairy is based on a ranch that was bought in 1948 by Beretta’s grandfather, where the pasture-raised cows graze today. According to Beretta, the advantages of pasture-raising their cows are many. “You’re able to utilize your own land for feed. Organic feed costs are starting to get very expensive so we’re able to use our land to produce as much of the feed as we can.” In addition to the nutritional value of feeding cows on the pasture, “being on grass instead of concrete is a lot easier on the feet and legs of cows,” says Beretta.

Wallaby’s founders were looking for family farms and pasture-based dairies with this type of commitment to their cows and their milk, so partnering with Beretta Family Organics made perfect sense.

What do you think about the changes that Beretta Family Organic Dairy made when they switched from conventional to organic processes? Watch the slideshow above and leave a comment with your answer by September 9^th. One comment will be chosen at random to win a $50 gift card to our stores.

Click here to check out Wallaby’s products or visit our stores to taste them for yourself. We carry their full line of organic yogurt as well as their outstanding sour cream!