Reinforcing its commitment to increase demand for dairy and bring more value to its members, Dairy Farmers of America (DFA), along with eight New York-area farm families, recently launched a new cheese brand, Craigs Creamery, which provides a direct connection to the farm.

From milk that goes from cow to creamery within hours to farming that focuses on environmental responsibility, the family-run farms of Craigs Creamery are committed to providing the best, freshest, New York dairy with respect for the land. All Craigs Creamery slices, shreds, bars and chunks are crafted with high-quality milk, all-natural ingredients and no added hormones.

DFA and its eight local farm families launched the new brand in response to growing consumer interest in wanting to know who produces their food.

“As a cooperative, we’re committed to responsibly producing milk and bringing high-quality dairy products from our family farms to family tables,” said Doug Glade, executive vice president of commercial operations at DFA. “With Craigs Creamery, consumers get to know where their food comes from and can have confidence it was sourced responsibly, which we know is highly important to today’s consumer.”

Made with only locally sourced milk from local family farms, Craigs Creamery believes the purity and freshness of its milk is critical to producing a higher-quality cheese.

“As a small collective of family farms, we keep a close eye on the purity and freshness of our milk. Each cow has a customized, nutritionist-led diet to ensure they produce only the highest-quality milk, which results in our great-tasting, award-winning cheese,” said Chris Noble, a seventh-generation farmer at Noblehurst Farms, one of the Craigs Creamery farms. “Fresh milk is picked up from the farms daily and delivered to the creamery, which is located just a few miles from where the cows are milked.”

The farm families said they maintain the tradition of family farming while incorporating the forward-thinking, innovative practices of modern agriculture. One of the farms features a state-of-the-art biodigester that powers the creamery; it is the only digester in the U.S. that fuels an on-site plant. The digester is powered by animal waste, which also is used to fertilize the fields, and expired food from the local community. In the past five years, it has upcycled nearly 20 million lb. of food scraps that otherwise would have gone to a landfill.

“At Craigs Creamery, we’re focused on the future of farming, which is why we’re constantly seeking new methods to reduce our carbon footprint,” Noble said. “From the biodigester to solar panels to recycling water waste, we are investing in sustainable methods and working towards becoming a 100% sustainable operation.”