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Yeo Valley Organic
The name Yeo Valley began when an independently owned company was set up in 1974, from a dairy farm in Blagdon, near Bristol, to produce yogurts and desserts. In 1994, a few of the neighbouring farmers moved over to organic milk production and gained Soil Association approval. A co-operative called OMSCo (Organic Milk Suppliers Co-operative) was set up by the farmers. OMSCo is now the UK's leading organic milk marketing organisation. Its membership is now over 350 farmers across the UK, which is the majority of organic milk produced in this country. OMSCo represents approximately 60% of the total UK organic milk production. Organic yogurt was first made at Yeo Valley's production plant in 1993, when these founder members of OMSCo were looking for a ready market for their milk. Although the level of consumer demand for organic dairy products was low at that time, Yeo Valley saw this as an opportunity to benefit from a local supply of organic raw material. In 1996, the company set up a second business called The Yeo Valley Organic Company Ltd, solely to produce organic products. The company has two organic production sites employing around 220 people - Cannington in Somerset (a yogurt dairy) and Heathfield in Devon (producing ice cream and frozen yogurt).
Whilst
best known for its organic yogurt range, Yeo Valley Organic uses surplus
cream, created as a by-product of the increased production of low fat
yogurt, in its range of cream, créme fraiche and ice cream.
The
group's headquarters provides centralised support for the whole company
- technical, business, engineering, commercial, IT and financial expertise.
Fairness and equitable trading with its suppliers and customers is part
of Yeo Valley's ethos, as well as the promotion of organic farming methods
and food consumption. The family is still family-owned and continues
to run its own farm with around 450 dairy cows, plus organic sheep and
beef.
back
to top About the product back
to top Key features of
manufactured yogurt are: flavour, aroma, appearance and texture. Many
of the operations in the manufacture of yogurt are designed to help
create or maintain a thick texture. These include:
back to top
Once made, the stirred yogurt is incubated in tanks and cooled before packaging into 150g or 450g pots. 125g pots are also packaged into fours for a fruited selection. The whole manufacturing process takes approximately 22.5 hours. The starter culture is bought from a specialist culture manufacturer, having been freeze-dried and packaged in foil pouches. This direct vat inoculation (DVI) method minimises the risk of contamination and makes a separate culture room unnecessary. The organic fruit is purchased from co-operatives abroad and processed by a local fruit producer, before being sent to the Yeo Valley organic site as a pre-prepared fruit mix or conserve. Unit operations and their control
Wholemilk yogurt must legally have a minimum fat content of 3%. Milk coming into the factory is standardised before processing to give a specific fat and dry matter content. Heat Treatment Heat treatment is usually achieved using heat exchangers such as a Plate Heat Exchanger (PHE) or Tubular Heat Exchanger (THE). These both transfer heat into milk efficiently by indirect methods (see diagrams). The design and size of the heat exchanger used will depend on the required flow rate and temperature, cleaning, viscosity, running times etc. The pasteuriser will deaerate the milk as it heats it, which is important when using skimmed milk powder.
Simplified diagram of a THE
Simplified diagram
of a PHE Homogenisation
Simplified diagram of a single phase homogeniser valve As the milk flows through the narrow gap the large fat droplets are torn apart, velocity increases and pressure falls to a level where it boils and bubbles form. As it leaves the gap the velocity falls and pressure increases again causing the steam bubbles to implode against the impact ring (cavitation). This reduces the size of the fat globules, as does turbulence (swirling action in all directions, to encourage rapid heat transfer and to get a good mixing action). The warm milk fat globules form a new fat:protein surface structure creating stability, a whiter appearance, better mouthfeel and a full bodied flavour. Quality assurance During the incubation period the yogurt is regularly checked for total acidity (after 2, 4, 5, 6, 6.5, 7, 7.5 and 8 hours.) A sample is taken aseptically from the incubation tank and titrated against 0.1 Molar sodium hydroxide with phenolphthalein indicator. Microbiological samples are taken post-pasteurisation and post-incubation and tested for Enterobacteriacacea, yeasts and moulds. The final product is organoleptically tested for taste and appearance. Its viscosity is assessed and further microbiological tests, called Accelerated Shelf-life tests, are carried out at 25 degrees C over 2, 3 and 4 days, mainly looking for yeasts and moulds. Samples of each batch of finished product are retained and assessed at the end of life. Process control
A CIP (cleaning in place) system is used which is a highly controlled program allowing for equipment to be cleaned thoroughly, with detergent solutions circulating through product lines, without disassembly.
About
the marketing A new packaging type has been in use since May 2000 and a new design was launched in March 2003. The new label has a modern appeal with a striking, clean, fresh image of fruit, or a wild daisy for natural products, on a background that is cream coloured for wholemilk yogurts and a light blue colour for fat free products. In 2001, Yeo Valley Organic won the Queen's Award for Enterprise in sustainable development for their role in the development of a sustainable UK organic dairy supply chain. This also recognises Yeo Valley's work to develop long term, sustainable supply partnerships with their organic fruit growers and processors, and more environmentally friendly packaging for products.
The aim is to present simple messages about the benefits of organic products without 'preaching' or bombarding the consumer with too much information. To learn more you can go to the Yeo Valley web site, which won an award for "Best Business to Consumer Website" in 2001 and has since been regularly updated. About
issues and values
The range of organic produce available has increased dramatically over the last ten years, from fruit and vegetables, to milk and dairy products and convenience foods. According to the Soil Association's annual Food and Farming Report, published in October 2004, sales of organic food and drink rose to £1,119m per annum. In the total UK food market, 1.2% of all food sales in 2004 were organic. In what is described as the 'organic defined market' (where an organic version of conventional products exists) this percentage rises to over 2%.
Organic milk production has been the most attractive prospect in a dairy farming sector beset with problems, because the premium has dropped by 25% compared to 5 years ago. This leaves many conventional dairy farms unable to operate profitably. In that time, organic dairy farmers have gone from not being able to sell their milk to not being able to meet demand, though in the last two years supply has temporarily overtaken demand. Generally, the shortage of home-grown organic produce in the UK can make it up to three times more expensive than non-organic food. Supermarkets estimate that demand for organic foods is higher than supply, but as more ingredients and products become available, some economies of scale will allow some of the price premiums to reduce. The Soil Association says that about 40% of shoppers are put off buying organic because of the cost. Prices are likely to fall as more UK producers are set up. However, there will continue to be organic cost premiums, due to the higher costs of organic farming. Many suppliers and retailers believe that organic produce should be an option for everyone, not just be for people of a certain income or social class. The Yeo Valley Organic Company aims to promote the sale of organic foods in general, having developed close links with suppliers. They have long term rolling contacts with the OMSCo farmers that guarantee prices. When they set up at the Cannington dairy, as part of a large established company, they were able to make cost effective use of its infrastructure and purchasing power to develop and launch new products. They aim for sustainability by addressing the need to continue the growth in supply of organic milk. Profits are ploughed back as investment, especially for new plant and automation.
Making
use of the case study - things to think about and do
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The
packaging design used is innovative. The previous packaging for the
yogurt pots was polyethelene-coated card, with a foil lid. This has
been replaced by a more environmentally friendly uncoated, unbleached
material produced from 98% recycled card. It has a vertical perforation
allowing it to be torn off to reveal information for the consumer on
the inside as well as the outside. The rigid outer card surrounds a
thin, enclosed polypropylene pot. Together these materials form a composite
package. As well as
single
150g
pots, the fruited yogurts are also sold in mixed packs of four 125g
pots, offering a wider range of fruit flavours.
In
May 2001 Yeo Valley Organic launched its first national advertising
campaign. The magazine adverts feature cartoon cows and take a light-hearted
approach to promoting the brand and products, whilst highlighting their
tasted and quality benefits. More recent advertising campaigns have
developed the taste and quality message whilst highlighting the difference
of organic products with the strap line: "Yeo Valley Organic:
In a world gone mad, it's sanely delicious."
