Taste of Childhood: TOP 3 Organic Ukrainian dairy producers
Ukrainian dairy products have been acknowledged as leaders among organic food products by the Ukrainian population, enjoying strong consumer demand. Despite the difficulties faced by dairy farms over the past two years, they have succeeded in preserving their productivity and extending their market reach.
It is widely held that the production of organic animal-based products is the most challenging. The standards have quite high requirements, including specific conditions that must be provided for the animals. These conditions should align with their biological and individual characteristics, such as access to outdoor areas and pastures, organic feed without the use of hormones, growth stimulants, and synthetic amino acids.
In partnership with Organic Standard, BrandStory is proud to present the third annual ranking of the most well-known organic dairy producers.
The primary objective of this initiative is to identify the industry's top performers and offer consumers the opportunity to select higher quality products.
TOP-3 organic dairy producers in Ukraine:
1st place: Organic Milk
The Organic Milk brand has been successfully operating on the Ukrainian market for the past decade, producing organic products on an industrial scale. All stages of production are certified by Organic Standard and comply with both international and Ukrainian organic production standards. Consequently, Organic Milk ensures the use of certified animal feed, grants free access to pasture areas, and employs an automated, contactless milking and bottling process.
Daily, approximately 30 tonnes of fresh milk are transformed into a diverse range of products, including ultrapasterized milk, lactose-free milk and other types, kefir, yoghurt, butter, sour cream, cheese, and more. In 2022-2023, the producer expanded its product line by introducing several types of kefir and butter, including lactose-free sweet cream butter, as well as new flavors of organic cheese with nuts, fenugreek, black cumin, and other unique options.
According to Olena Stretovych, Director of Organic Milk, the company has encountered a number of challenges due to the full-scale war in Ukraine. These challenges included a decrease in the number of target consumers due to population migration, closure of export markets o in the Persian Gulf countries, and increased production costs, ultimately leading to reduced profitability. Nevertheless, the company has successfully maintained its economic stability and is currently expanding its exports to the European Union countries, notably Poland. Additionally, it is in ongoing negotiations with potential partners in Italy.
In Poland, Organic Milk products are available in a variety of stores, including ALDI, Allegro, Auchan, Detal, Hurt, Intermarche, Leclerc, Marko, Snack, and others.
In Ukraine, the Organic Milk brand is well-represented in all the specialized organic stores and major national supermarkets, including Goodwine, Winetime, Metro, Silpo, Auchan, Velyka Kyshenya, Fora, and many more.
2nd place: Staryi Porytsk
The Staryi Porytsk farm, located in Volyn region, was established in 2009. They obtained an official certificate of compliance with organic standards from Organic Standard in 2012. Since 2014, a significant portion of their production has undergone additional scrutiny under the high standards set by Bio Suisse, Switzerland.
The Staryi Porytsk farm operates in various sectors, including crop production, animal husbandry, and milk processing. They keep their cows in free-range conditions and feed them carefully selected natural feeds that they grow themselves.
The key feature of their production lies in the fact that the entire process takes place in one location. As stated by the owner of Staryi Porytsk, Valentyn Obshtyr, they ensure and control all stages, from initial cultivation to the finalproduct, involving the same employees and operations within one locality. This undoubtedly contributes to the high quality of their products.
Under the Staryi Porytsk brand, they produce over 40 different types of organic dairy products, including various hard and soft cheeses, yoghurts, butter, kefir, buttermilk, sour cream, and pasteurized milk of different fat content.
Their products are available in numerous stores, including the Silpo chain and other local retail outlets. Additionally, their products can be ordered from online stores specializing in healthy nutrition.
3rd place: EthnoProduct
The brand has been in existence for 14 years and belongs to EthnoProduct PJSC, a Ukrainian-Swiss agricultural enterprise with an integrated production cycle. They produce up to 15 different types of dairy products.
Their production process is fully integrated, with all stages certified and under control of Organic Standard.
The fields and farms of the enterprise are located in the northeastern part of Chernihiv region, Ukraine, covering approximately 570 hectares of organic land, including pastures, hayfields, and arable land. They also keeparound 330 head of cattle. Milk production takes place at a dairy processing facility near Kyiv.
This company was the first in Ukraine to sell organic raw, non-homogenized milk in stores and remains a leader in this segment. This is a high-tech product with a short shelf life.
Although the territory where the production facilities are located was occupied from 24 February to 2 April 2022, the farm continued to operate. Unfortunately, there were shortages of feed and fuel, and even the substation was destroyed, leading to a lack of electricity. However, the farm continued to operate using generators. Due to the destruction of bridges leading to Kyiv, the primary market, the farm couldn't deliver its products to the capital. Milk supplies were restored in the summer of 2022, after the reconstruction of the bridges over the Desna River. Currently, the enterprise operates almost in a pre-war mode.
Корів утримують безприв'язно в сучасних умовах тваринницького комплексу і годують збалансованими натуральними кормами власного виробництва.
Cows at the farm are kept in free-range conditions within a modern livestock complex and are fed with balanced natural feeds of ownproduction.
The company produces 12 types of dairy products under the EthnoProduct brand, including yogurts, butter, kefir, buttermilk, and pasteurized milk with varying fat content. You can purchase their products in the Silpo supermarket chain, as well as other local retail chains and online organic food stores .
Ukrainian organic dairy producers persistently showcase their robust competitiveness and innovation potential, even during challenging periods. This industry retains its paramount importance in the organic sector, and we can expect further accomplishments and pioneering advancements in the future.
Methodology for Ranking
The ranking of the most recognized organic brands was developed in several stages, and companies were evaluated based on the following criteria:
Production and Sales Volumes on the Domestic Market:
The primary source of information was a study of the domestic organic market within the Ukrainian food sector in 2022. The organic operators’ sales volumes were assessed. These were primarily the organic operators certified by Organic Standard (considering that over 95% of organic operators that produce and distribute organic products in Ukraine are certified by Organic Standard, these data are considered to be representative.)
Results from 2023 were also taken into account, evaluating how companies performed this year. Due to the difficulties associated with the full-scale war, some operators were occupied, while others faced disruptions in production processes and supply chains. However, many companies were able to adapt quickly, change their marketing policies, and expand their product ranges.
Presence of Brands in Retail Chains:
Firstly, the presence and availability of products in the stores were considered. Marketing experts analysed how many and what retail stores have got products of organic brands. The broader the geographical coverage of stores and chains, the higher the brand's rating.
Secondly, the brand's popularity in the stores was taken into account. The popularity and demand for the brand's products among customers in the stores were assessed. This included sales levels, customer feedback, and other factors indicating the brand's distinctiveness from competitors.
Marketing experts evaluated this aspect based on the information provided by organic and farmer product stores, as well as producers.
The Activity of Brands in Media and Social Media:
The evaluation was conducted based on the results of online monitoring. The quantity and quality of brand mentions in media and social media, overall activity, communication, as well as how well they informed consumers about current events and other details were taken into account. The activity of company pages in social media was also analysed, including the quality of content and interaction with the audience.
Transparency of companies and willingness to communicate were also considered in the evaluation of companies.
*This publication has been produced with the support of Switzerland within the Swiss-Ukrainian program "Higher Value Added Trade from the Organic and Dairy Sector in Ukraine" (QFTP), implemented by the Research Institute of Organic Agriculture (FiBL, Switzerland) in partnership with SAFOSO AG (Switzerland).
The responsibility for the content of this publication lies solely with the author(s). The point of view of the author(s) does not necessarily reflect the views of SECO, FiBL, SAFOSO AG.
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