A Source of Health: TOP Organic Dairy Producers in Ukraine
Organic dairy products continue to be the most popular in Ukraine, accounting for between 20 and 30% of total organic consumption.
Production of organic animal products is one of the most challenging, given the high standards required for both animal welfare and production and storage technologies.
This year, despite the challenging economic environment, milk producers continue to actively expand their product range and open new markets.
In cooperation with Organic Standard, BrandStory presents the fourth annual ranking of the most famous Ukrainian organic dairy producers.
The material is available in Ukrainian.
TOP organic dairy producers in Ukraine
1st place: Organic Milk
Organic Milk is a Ukrainian brand that has been producing organic dairy products for over a decade. The plant owned by the brand uses its own raw materials to produce more than 60 organic dairy products.
These include milk, kefir, sour cream, drinking and spoon yoghurts, various cheeses, vanilla curd mass, condensed milk, butter and a range of lactose-free products.
The brand’s symbol is a well-known “circle” on the product labelling. This symbol embodies two aspects: the name “Organic Milk” and the idea of a closed, continuous production cycle. Every day, about 30 tonnes of fresh milk is transformed into a variety of products.
Product quality is a guarantee of the use of certified organic animal feed, free access to outdoor areas and automated, non-contact milking and bottling.
All stages of production are certified as organic in accordance with the requirements of the organic legislations of Ukraine and other countries, including the EU, and are controlled by Organic Standard.
Last year, the company focused on expanding its export markets, including Poland, Italy, Germany, the USA, Moldova, and the UAE.
“The plans for the next year include expanding the range of products on the domestic market and expanding export markets,” says Olena Stretovych, Director of Organic Milk LLC.
Products under the Organic Milk brand are available in all specialised organic stores and large national supermarkets in Ukraine, such as Goodwine, Winetime, Metro, Silpo, Auchan, Velyka Kyshenia, Fora, Novus, MegaMarket and others.
Website: www.organic-milk.com.ua
Watch the full story about the company on Organic Standard’s YouTube channel:
#BravеOrganicInUkraine
More information about the company can be found in the article here:
2nd place: Staryi Porytsk
Staryi Porytsk farming enterprise was founded in Volyn in 2009. In 2012, it received its first official certificate of compliance with EU organic legislation from Organic Standard.
The farm is engaged in crop production, livestock production, and milk processing. The farm uses high-tech organic production methods, and the cows are kept in good conditions and fed with selected organic feed.
The Staryi Porytsk brand produces more than 70 types of organic products, including cereals and dairy products such as cheese, yoghurt, butter, kefir, fermented baked milk, and pasteurised milk of various fat content. The range also includes organic semi-finished products such as cottage cheese pancakes and lazy varenyky (cottage cheese dumplings).
“The company plans to start processing meat with the prospect of constructing a small facility for this purpose, similar to the one we have now for milk processing”, says Valentyn Obshtyr, owner of Staryi Porytsk.
In October this year, the farm opened its first Moloko branded store (Lutsk, Volyn region,). Their products can be purchased in stores, including Silpo, or ordered from online stores specialising in healthy food.
Website: www.porytsk.com
Watch the full story about the company on Organic Standard’s YouTube channel:
#BravеOrganicInUkraine
More information about the company can be found in the article here:
The material is available in Ukrainian
Methodology for ranking
The ranking of the most recognized organic brands was developed in several stages, with companies evaluated according to the following criteria:
Production and sales volumes on the domestic market:
The main source of information was a study of the Ukrainian organic food market in 2023. The organic operators’ sales volumes were assessed. These were primarily the organic operators certified by Organic Standard. Since more than 95% of organic operators that produce and distribute organic products in Ukraine are certified by Organic Standard, these data are considered to be representative. The results of 2024 were also taken into account to assess how the companies operated in the current year. Due to the difficulties associated with the full-scale war, some companies have faced disruptions in production and supply. However, many companies are quickly adapting to the circumstances, changing their marketing strategies and expanding their product range.
Presence of brands in retail chains:
Firstly, the presence and availability of products in the stores were assessed. 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: sales levels, customer feedback, and other factors indicating the brand's distinctiveness from competitors.
The activity of brands in media and social media:
The evaluation was conducted based on the results of online monitoring. The number 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 companies’ 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.
The material is available in Ukrainian.
* 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 contents of this publication are the sole responsibility of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the development partner and program implementers.