When it comes to our milk supply and whey products, Grande Milk Marketing goes above and beyond all industry expectations. Starting with our Grande Producer Dairy Farms and ending at the places where our cheeses and whey products are used, we maintain the utmost level of integrity throughout each step of our cheese-making and distribution process. In order to provide you with the safest, highest-quality dairy products, we invest a lot of time and effort into perfecting our personal customized approach, strict chain of custody, cow comfort practices, and innovative research. By perfecting every element of our dairy production process, we’re able to provide you with the best cheese and whey products.
Personal Customized Approach
When a dairy producer chooses to work with Grande, our Field Services Staff works diligently with their farm to tailor a specific plan that maximizes milk quality and production. For example, with our Milk Management Assistance Program (MMAP)®, our Herd Health & Wellness Veterinarian reviews the dairy’s milking equipment, milking procedures, and cow environment in order to ensure that their facilities and procedures are optimized for production. In fact, our Grande Producer Service Representatives can perform these checks up to 4 times annually in order to guarantee the highest quality year round!
Strict Chain of Custody
As we strive to be known as one of the best ingredient companies in the nation, food quality and safety are our top priorities. Our 100% natural production process starts with the daily collection of fresh, Grade A milk from Grande Producer Dairy Farms. From there, the milk is brought to one of our USDA, FDA, and Safe Quality Food (SQF) Level 3-certified processing facilities. Universally recognized by the Global Food Safety Initiative (GSFI), manufacturers of “consumer packaged goods,” and foodservice programs, the SQF program is one of the most rigorous, credible food safety management systems in the world. After going through numerous quality checkpoints, it’s here where the fresh milk is transformed into extraordinary, world-class Grande Italian cheese. The process doesn’t end here though!
After collecting the high-quality whey leftover from our cheese production process, the unbleached fresh whey is then brought to our state-of-the-art, SQF Level 3-certified whey processing plants. Putting it through our rigorous, proprietary production process, it’s here where our whey is finally transformed into a variety of value-added whey products, such as Grande Bravo® and Grande Ultra®. By following this strict chain of custody, we can guarantee safe, secure, and consistent products that exceed all standards.
Cow Comfort
When we talk about cow comfort at Grande, we mean that our cows are comfortable where they rest, where they’re milked, and where they eat. Simply put, we believe that comfortable, healthy cows produce a higher quality of milk, resulting in higher quality products and ingredients. To help quantify this, we use a series of measurements and indexes for cows housed in free stall barns, including:
- Cow Comfort Index (CCI)
- Stall Usage Index (SUI)
- Stall Standing Index (SSI)
- Rumination percentage
- Heat stress indicators
- And more!
By consistently measuring and tracking these metrics, our dairy producers are better able to reach their production goals and maximize milk quality. To learn more about the indexes and measurements used to gauge cow comfort, click here.
Innovative Research
Last but not least, one of Grande’s most important elements of success is our dedication to innovative research. In order to ensure that we stay ahead of the dairy production curve, we’re constantly developing new products and use applications at our state-of-the-art pilot plant and research facility. For example, In order to help Grande dairy producers calculate and track their Cow Comfort metrics, we created an exclusive app to use with their smart phones. Here, their data is stored and made readily available to measure progress, make adjustments, and improve the cow comfort. With these real time results and metrics, our dairy producers are able to make quantifiable adjustments that dynamically improve our dairy quality.
From start to finish, you won’t find another dairy more committed to perfecting every element of their production process. Whether we’re improving cow comfort or implementing cutting edge technologies, every decision we make supports our goal of improving the final product. For more information about how these elements impact our production processes and final product, please contact Grande Milk Marketing.
