Saturday, July 8, 2017

6 Dairy Processors Join New York State Grown & Certified Program

From Gov. Andrew Cuomo's office:

Six additional dairy processors have joined the New York State Grown & Certified program. 

Consumers will soon be able to find the Certified label on select milk, yogurt and cheese products from Byrne Dairy, Upstate Niagara Cooperative, McCadam Cheese, King Brothers Dairy, Hudson Valley Fresh Dairy and Beecher’s Handmade Cheese. 

These dairy processors source their milk from more than 1,200 farms across the State, providing significant support to New York’s largest agricultural sector.

"Dairy is a major part of our agricultural industry and the New York State Grown & Certified program will help to further grow this critical sector of this state's economy," said Gov. Andrew Cuomo. "By expanding this program to dairy, we promote even more of New York’s finest producers and hard-working farmers, connect consumers to high-quality products and support the growth of local economies."

New York State Grown & Certified is a promotional program that distinguishes agricultural products that are sourced from New York farms and made by producers who meet safe food handling practices and demonstrate environmental stewardship.

Last month, the governor announced a new partnership with Stewart’s Shops to expand New York State Grown & Certified to include Stewart’s milk, ice cream, half and half, heavy cream and eggs. Today’s announcement further advances the program’s goal of growing the State’s vital agricultural industry by highlighting New York farms and processors who meet a higher standard.
 
Central New York
 
Byrne Dairy
, a fourth generation, family-owned dairy processor and distributor, has already placed the New York State Grown & Certified label on its new line of Byrne Hollow Farm organic milk products, which are sold in Whole Foods Markets, Byrne Dairy stores and other select retailers. 

Later this month, consumers can begin to look for the Certified label on Byrne Dairy’s new line of Byrne Hollow Farm grass-fed milk products sold at BJ’s Wholesale Club locations. In the coming weeks, Byrne Dairy also plans to announce another new and exciting line of products bearing the Certified label. 
Since the very beginning, Byrne Dairy has prided itself on working with hundreds of local and family farms — most of which are located no more than 40 miles from the company’s processing plants — to produce the freshest and best tasting dairy products.

Western New York
 
Upstate Niagara Cooperative, Inc. is a food and beverage company owned by 345 New York dairy farm families, and has offered innovative, award-winning, high-quality dairy products to New York State residents for generations. 
With a commitment to quality that extends to every stage of production, from the farm to the consumer, their products include milk, flavored milk beverages, yogurt, dip, sour cream, cottage cheese, and ice cream mix products marketed throughout New York State under the Upstate Farms®, Bison®, and Intense Milk® brands.  
Headquartered in Buffalo, Upstate Niagara will be adding the New York Certified seal to many of their fluid milk products in the coming months.
   
North Country
 
McCadam Cheese, which is owned by Agri-Mark, the leading dairy farmer cooperative in the Northeast, has also joined the New York State Grown & Certified program. McCadam, located in Franklin County, manufactures award-winning New York Cheddar, Muenster and European-style cheeses using milk from 588 New York dairy farms that adhere to the highest quality standards. 

McCadam cheeses are sold in over 500 stores across the Northeast, including Hannaford and Price Chopper. Consumers can expect to see the Certified label on their products next year.
 
Capital Region
 
King Brothers Dairy is a family-owned farm and processor in Saratoga County. It is one of the remaining few dairy processors in the country that continue to deliver glass-bottled milk directly to customer’s doors. 
It is known for its top, purebred Holstein cows and high-quality milk. King Brothers Dairy delivers to customers across the Capital Region, and their products can be found in an increasing number of groceries and small markets in the region.
 
Mid-Hudson
 
Hudson Valley Fresh Dairy is a cooperative of 10 dairy farmers located in Dutchess, Columbia and Ulster counties. It is dedicated to preserving the agricultural heritage of the Hudson River Valley and produces a wide selection of premium-quality dairy products. 
Its milk, whole-milk, ice cream, half and half, heavy cream, yogurt and sour cream will all carry the Certified label. Consumers can find Hudson Valley Fresh products in nearly 100 locations in the Hudson Valley.

New York City
 
Beecher’s Handmade Cheese is an award-winning, urban cheesemaker located in New York City’s Flatiron District. Its unique, glass-enclosed cheesemaking kitchen gives visitors the opportunity to watch the company’s centuries-old cheesemaking process as it happens. Using milk from four local farms, Beecher’s produces a variety of specialty cheeses that are free of artificial colors, flavors, and preservatives.

"The addition of these incredible dairy processors to the Grown & Certified program not only supports hundreds of family-owned farms in nearly every region of the state, it also gives consumers an opportunity to easily identify New York's world-class agricultural products that are made to a higher standard," said state Department of Agriculture and Markets Commissioner Richard Ball. 


"Shoppers can feel good knowing the milk, cheese, yogurt and other dairy products made by these companies comes from farms and processing facilities that are committed to food safety and environmental sustainability,” Ball said.

“Byrne Dairy is proud to join the New York State Grown & Certified Program. Having locally sourced, farm-fresh milk for over 84 years, we believe that the Certified label will give our producer partners the recognition they deserve,” said Carl Byrne, executive vice president of sales and marketing for Byrne Dairy.

No comments:

Post a Comment