It starts with this place. Because New Zealand is a great place to produce organic dairy. We’ve got the perfect climate, location, and environment for pasture-based organic farming.
And we’ve got the very best organic farmers too. Farmers who are passionate about the principles of organic farming, preserving our natural environment for future generations, and who understand lessening our environmental impact is essential.
Organic milk is a precious commodity in the Co-op, making up less than 1% of the milk we produce.
What makes organic, organic?
Organic is a farming and food production system which is strictly regulated to deliver high quality food, using methods which benefit our people, animals and the environment.
We farm in harmony with nature without synthetic pesticides, fertilisers, GMOs and antibiotics. Embodying the values of kaitiakitanga, because it’s our responsibility to protect and care for the land we farm, the animals we raise and the people we share our product with.
However not all organic dairy is created equally, different types of organic dairy farming exist, ranging from highly intensive housed systems to lower intensity pasture-based systems like ours.
New Zealand’s temperate climate means our organic cows spend their time outdoors, grazing on grass in the natural sunlight and fresh air. In addition, New Zealand’s pasture-based farming model enables us to deliver a comparatively low on farm emissions footprint and a high level of animal wellbeing.
But it doesn’t just stop with how we farm, the rigorous organic certification process provides a mark of trust that our consumers recognise as a signpost for quality, sustainability and nutrition and it commands a premium in many of our markets around the globe.
365 days grass-fed and pasture-raised
Farmed without synthetic pesticides and fertilisers
Free from GMO's, antibiotics and growth hormones
High standard of animal wellbeing
From Left to Right: Tania Bennett | Adrian Townsend | Laura Watts | William Watts
Meet our organic farmers
Durham Farm
Durham Farms was founded with the vision to profitably grow organic food while leaving the land healthier and more productive. 25% of their farmland is set aside for habitat protection and regeneration, proving that considered farming can work with nature.
Based in Waipu, Northland, Durham Farms undertakes a mixed farming approach where crops and livestock are grown together. This includes dairy cows, chickens, beef cattle, horticulture, and bees.
The entire farm is certified to high organic standards, and everything grown is complementary to one another. Durham Farms have supplied Fonterra since 2016
Fonterra organic products and ingredients
Demand for organic dairy is growing. This is being driven by a growing awareness of how food is produced and consumers desire for greater transparency. Consumers are looking for environmentally friendly products that are sustainable, healthy and that support animal and employee welfare.
Our high quality organic certified milk is turned into a wide range of organic dairy products and ingredient. Learn more about our range below.
NZMP
Organic Dairy Nutrition - premium, safe organic dairy ingredients that are closer to nature.
Mainland Organic
Mainland cheese - 100% organic milk, real mellow and smooth. AsureQuality certified organic.
Mainland Australia Organic butter salted
100% pure and certified organic New Zealand butter.