Last Thursday I had the chance to take a little blogging field trip to the Stonyfield Farm Yogurt Works here in New Hampshire. I met up with a great group of New Hampshire based bloggers from Blog & Tweet NH and we got a tour of their visitors center and a chance to sample some of Stonyfield's old and new products.

Stonyfield yogurt was a staple in our house growing up, and was my go-to snack in college (my dorm fridge was always stocked) and when we lived in Arizona I always reached for Stonyfield: it was a little taste of home. In my mind Stonyfield is "New Hampshire's Yogurt." I can't say I've always been a loyal Stonyfield customer, there was a time I quit dairy completely and when I did start to add dairy back in to our family's diet I started purchasing Chobani yogurt simply because I like the texture, flavors and price point. I kind of "forgot" about Stonyfield, except for when I craved my favorite flavor: Chocolate Underground. So it was great to visit the Yogurt Works and get reacquainted with a brand that I once really loved.

When we arrived at the Yogurt Works, we were greeted by Chandra and Kristina of Stonyfield. They led us through the visitors center to a round little room they call the "silo" (it looks like a real silo from the outside), where we learned about Stonyfields history, their mission and some of the products they are making today at the Londonderry Yogurt Works. As we listened and learned about the company there were a few things that struck me:

Stonyfield is organic. They were making organic yogurt long before "organic" was even a popular. I guess because it was common place in our refrigerator as a kid I never thought of it as being that different from other yogurts. But the fact that there yogurt is made from organic milk is actually a big deal. I means that not only are the cows free of GMO (genetically modified organism) like rBST (a genetically modified/synthetically produced hormone that increases milk production) but the feed the cows eat is also organic and free of any genetic modification. There's also growing research that organically fed cows produce a more nutritionally dense, higher quality milk. I'm slowly coming around to the position that organic is worth the extra money, especially if it means that what I'm purchasing is free of genetically modified organisms. The fact that my son was born with a collection of abnormal skin cells on his back puts him at a greater risk for cancer (even though they have been removed), which has raised my awareness about what is going into his body and mine (as I am still breastfeeding).

Did you know that rBST increases milk production in cows by 11-16%? But that artificially increased milk can cause clinical mastitis in cows? I've had a mild case of mastitis....those poor cows. Think about that breastfeeding moms!

The milk comes from a co-op of family owned organic farms here in NH and across New England in Vermont, Maine and Massachusetts. I like the idea of supporting local farmers who are choosing to continue the farming way of life. My husband's family used own the largest chicken farm in the state, but a generation ago they got rid of all the chickens, tore down the coops and sold the land. Now there are homes that line the road where the farm used to be. It's kind of sad really. Small family-run farms are dying off, I like the idea that Stonyfield chooses to get their milk from these farms.

Stonyfield also employs thoughtful and responsible manufacturing practices. From the moment the milk is picked up from the farm to the moment you peel back the lid on your yogurt, Stonyfield has thought through the best ways to eliminate waste of energy and product. I wouldn't say I'm a huge environmentalist, but I do believe in stewarding the resources you have to the best of your ability and it seems that Stonyfield is doing that.

After we learned a bit more about the company we had a chance to sample their products. We had our pick from the refrigerators there at Stonyfield. One of the first things I tried was Stonyfield's newly re-named greek yogurt line. Stonyfield has been making greek yogurt for a while now, but it was marketed under the name Oikos. They've since switched over to simply calling it Stonyfield Greek. Of course I reached for the chocolate on the bottom and it was scrape-the-bottom-of-the-dish delicious! Creamy and chocolatey but not too sweet, which is what I love about greek yogurt.

Delicious Chocolate and yogurt sampling carnage.

We also had a chance to sample one of their newer products the Stonyfield Blends. Personally I'am a fruit-on-the-bottom kind of girl. I don't like to stir my yogurts (You can ask my college roommate. I once freaked out when she absent mindedly stirred my yogurt). I like to eat a little from the top, slide my spoon down the side and eat a little from the bottom, take more off the top and then give it a half stir. I'm weird like that. But with an open mind I gave the blends a try and it was, well it was pretty good. Sweet and fruity and creamy like you'd want a good blended yogurt to be. I still prefer the tangy taste and thicker texture of greek yogurt.

The new Stonyfield Blends, for all you yogurt stirrers out there.

And since I was the only blogger there with little kiddos I got to take all the YoKids Smoothies home with me. Major score! Sophia loved them and has been surreptitiously asking for them by telling me she is "thirsty." It goes something like this: "Mommy, I'm thirsty." "You could have some water," I say. The answer doesn't satisfy. So she counters, "I know Mommy! [as if she has come up with the most brilliant idea ever] I could have one of those drinkable yogurt smoothies we have in the refrigerator on the top shelf, the ones in the back. I'll show you." As if giving me more information will incline me to get it for her. Anyway, She loves them.

We also tried these little beauties from Stonyfield's sister company, Brown Cow. The cream top is seriously better than ice cream. So delicious. I ate one there and then another when I got home, they were that good. Unfortunately our local grocery store doesn't carry Brown Cow, so I might have to make another trip down to Londonderry to restock when we run out.

Not only was the yogurt delicious the company was fantastic. I had a chance to connect with NH bloggers I've already met: Janine and Amy. And meet a few new faces, ladies who blog about all kinds of things from nutrition, to peanut butter to wineries and everything in between. At the end of the night the ladies from Stonyfield sent us home with a great swag bag including this cookbook, which I'm really looking forward to trying out:

*Disclaimer: Stonyfield gave us free samples of yogurt and a goodie bag to take home, but the opinions expressed in this post are all my own. I really like the company much more now that I've visited. I've also visited Ben and Jerry's in Vermont and I was given free samples there too, but honestly I like yogurt more than ice cream. I'd much rather right about the yogurt;)

Have you tried Stonyfield? Do you have a favorite yogurt flavor? What are your thoughts on buying organic?

--Sarah

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