Stonyfield started as an organic farming school that made yogurt to fund education programs—and today we still put organic food and organic education first. Making healthy organic food available to as many people as possible everywhere they go is our passion. In that spirit, I’m excited to announce two new initiatives that will allow us to bring organic yogurt to more people and make the benefits of organic food more widely known.
Expanding access and availability of organic food was what we had in mind when in 2001 Stonyfield joined the global Danone family (then named Groupe Danone). Our unique partnership with Danone has allowed us to broaden our organic reach to other countries and expand our state-of-the-art New Hampshire Yogurt Works. In turn, we’ve shared our best practices with Danone, educating them on the benefits of organic food and its growth possibilities, as well as sharing insights on implementing environmental efforts like our plant-based multipack yogurt cups and our innovative wastewater treatment plant.
We’re now excited to announce a new initiative—this time between Stonyfield and Dannon (another member of the Danone family). We are introducing Stonyfield Organic Activia, an organic yogurt with the unique probiotic culture used in Dannon’s Activia yogurt. Based on consumer demand, we’ve crafted this new smooth and creamy Stonyfield yogurt with the added probiotic culture that is exclusive to Activia. Now you won’t have to choose between Stonyfield Organic and Activia—you can have it all in one organic yogurt.
Also in the works is another change that will put more Stonyfield organic yogurt on grocery shelves. We’re teaming up with Dannon in the Greek yogurt category to use the power of both companies to advocate for organic yogurt to be in many more stores. Our goal is to make Oikos Organic Greek yogurt available to everybody wherever they shop. While our delicious Stonyfield Oikos Organic Greek yogurt will remain the same, now Dannon will offer its consumers a non-organic Dannon Oikos Greek yogurt that uses a different recipe than ours. Stonyfield Oikos Organic Greek yogurt will still be the authentically strained, tasty organic yogurt in the flavors you love. In fact, there will be even more to love as we roll out new Peach Mango and Honey Fig flavors, as well as the first drinkable Oikos Organic Greek yogurt.
Nothing about the way we make our Stonyfield yogurts is changing—we will continue to use only the best organic ingredients and to give 10% of our profits to efforts that help to protect and restore the earth, just as we always have.
I’m excited about the potential to grow organic in the U.S. and worldwide and hope that our new organic yogurts will be something you and your families will enjoy.
Gary Hirshberg
Stonyfield President and CE-Yo
This makes absolutely no sense whatsoever. This all reads like a pile of disingenuous corporate-speak. How will Stonyfield “put more Stonyfield organic yogurt on grocery shelves” by offering “its consumers a non-organic Dannon Oikos Greek yogurt”?? The company is contradicting itself within a single paragraph!
I’m not necessarily against this rebranding, but an explanation that doesn’t insult the intelligence of everyone in the room would have been nice.
Hi Kate – The grocery business is a funny business and and we can see why it’s hard to understand what we meant. Organic food makes up only 4% of all food purchases in the US and we’re trying to grow that number and make organic available to more individuals. Adding organic Activia was one strategy. Joining forces with Dannon on Oikos was another. There is only so much shelf space in a dairy case and the more variety a particular brand offers is often a reason for stores to select one over another. By offering a wider range of Oikos flavors, fat contents, and both organic and non-organic, we’re approaching retailers with more clout and hopefully gaining more of that precious space.
We know this seems counter-intutitve, but in our efforts to make organic more available in more places, sometimes we have to consider new ways to get it on the shelves.
Best, Amy
It is a sell out, Dannon will not be organic to keep selling at 99 cents. Will I give up Organic for the price?? Probably yes since I eat it a least once a day and need to protien for the price.
I’m all for making organic products more available but a little concerned about this Bifidus Regularis that is an exclusive culture in Activia. If it’s a developed strain of bacteria how can it be labeled as organic? If GMO’s aren’t allowed in organic products how is a developed bacteria any different?
Hi Sarah -
Stonyfield Activia, just like all of our Stonyfield yogurts, is certified organic by the US Department of Agriculture. That means ingredients like the milk, fruit, and sweeteners in our yogurt are certified organic, too. Our yogurt cultures also meet the criteria of the National Organic Program of the USDA, which has specific guidelines for living cultures that are different than regular agricultural ingredient. These criteria include the fact that the cultures cannot be genetically modified or engineered. The natural probiotic cultures in all of our yogurt, including the ones found in Stonyfield Activia, meet those standards: they are not genetically modified.
Best,
Amy
[...] Bingo! Although, it still required some digging on my part. It wasn’t until I read their Blog that I found what I was looking for. Stonyfield explains how they are “teaming up with [...]
In a recent discussion here at Fidelity in Merrimack NH about the Stonyfield Yogurts that contains blueberries, the general concensus is the blueberries, regardless of the type of yogurt, have no flavor and are dried and hard. I have discovered this in the Greek Yogurt but others I expressed it to stated they had the same thought on all the Stonyfield Blueberry Yogurts. Many of us are Londonderry residents and are very proud that we have this wonderful company as part of our community and cared enough to offer this feedback.
Hi Nancy – It definitely sounds like something isn’t right with the blueberry yogurt you all consumed and we’d like to hear more about it. Can you give our consumer relations team a call at 1-800-PRO-COWS so they can help out? We appreciate your taking the time to send us your feedback…it means very much to us to have you in our community and to have your support. Best, Stonyfield Amy
Some of us need to eat only plain (i.e., no fruit juice, honey, sugar or other sweetening added) yogurt in the 5.3 oz. Greek style or the 6 oz. regular yogurt sizes (to pack for lunch). However, in this area, most stores (both national/regional chain types and local health/whole/natural food types) no longer carry the plain versions, opting instead to carry only the many flavored versions you (Stonyfield and Dannon) promote. Dannon said it isn’t their fault when theirs disappeared, blaming the stores. The stores blamed the warehouse – but have no label or place holder for plain on the shelf. Then Stonyfield’s plain 0% fat yogurt and the plain Oikos Greek style also started disappearing and even the low fat plain yogurt is harder to find. Except for intermittent supplies of Dannon Greek style plain, none of the chains carry any lunch-size plain yogurts, and they are hard to come by in the local stores. Staff in every have told me I am not the only person looking. So, while your flavored yogurts sound delicious for others to enjoy – please keep up the production and promotion of good ol’ plain yogurt in small sizes for the rest of us.
Oikos organic isn’t changing at all and if it means that it’s available in more places, it seems like a good thing to me.
Hmmmmm. Not sure how I feel about using the Oikos name for non-organic yogurt. Almost feels like a sell out.