The equivalent of an ‘Oscar for the dairy world’ has been won by Little Big Dairy Co.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The company’s Less Cream Milk, produced by the Chesworth family, was awarded first place at the 2017 Australian Grand Dairy Awards.
It was a “huge win” said chief judge Russell Smith.
“This is the Oscars of the cheese and dairy world. You have to have won a gold medal at a state level and that’s not easy to do. This is the best of the best,” Mr Smith said.
“It’s a huge win and I think they’ve done a fantastic job.”
The Less Cream Milk was against 30 other products and Mr Smith said milk was not an easy product to judge as the differences were only subtle.
However, Mr Smith said Little Big Dairy Co’s milk had been super fresh, sweet and was carefully produced.
Winning the award could open doors for the company, Mr Smith said. He said if they were looking to get into a new market the award would be a great selling point that would differentiate the company from other producers.
Mr Smith has been judging dairy in both Australia and overseas for more than 20 years. He said Australia’s milk was some of the best in the world and better than most places, as dairy cows were kept outside where they can graze rather than in sheds, making the milk sweeter.
“The milk that I judged, there wouldn’t be anything better in the world,” he said.
Little Big Dairy Co director Emma Elliot said the company took a risk in going out on their own and the award showed the risk had paid off.
“It’s quite a humbling experience but I also feel we deserve it. We go the extra mile day after day, with a strong focus on the nutrition, health and comfort of ‘our girls’, with world class production facilities and having that overall control of seeing our products from our farm to the shelf,” she said.
Ms Elliot said Little Big Dairy Co had worked extremely hard in the last few years to create a trusted, quality brand and to produce the best. Being a single source dairy ensured the integrity of the produce, she said.
The company’s double cream was also a finalist.