DOING DAIRY DIFFERENTLY SINCE 1918

WE DO DAIRY DIFFERENTLY

Maybe that's why the Darigold name is spelled without the letter y. Or why we're still a farmer-owned cooperative after nearly 100 years. Or why we think dairy should be daring, delicious and anything but dull.

THE YEAR WAS 1918 OUR FOUNDING FARMERS

Woodrow Wilson was president. Automobiles were beginning to take to the streets, and five Puget Sound dairy co-ops joined forces to create the United Dairymen's Association. These independent farmers united to sell quality dairy products at a fair price. And since the Northwest produced more milk than its people used, the UDA worked with Seattle food broker Umberto M. Dickey to find markets for the co-ops' manufactured products outside the region.

AND SO IT BECAME

At a summer picnic in 1925, a prize was offered for the best suggestion of a brand name for the cooperative's dairy products. The name Darigold was selected as the winner. By 1930, the UDA had purchased Dickey's Consolidated Dairy Products Company.

1932

Two years later, the Darigold name was registered with the US Patent Office. A diamond logo served to identify Darigold as our first registered trademark.

1952

After two decades, our diamond logo was retired in favor of the new 'Darigold daisy' logo. For over 60 years, people have associated this logo with quality, consistency and freshness.

NW DAIRYMEN'S ASSOCIATION

The Northwest Dairymen's Association was formed in 1961 through a merger of 10 United Dairymen's affiliated co-ops in Puget Sound. This led to additional mergers and acquisitions, which strengthened the Northwest Dairymen's marketing potential.

THE '60s

In 1962 the World's Fair came to Seattle. Fairgoers were dazzled by the Space Needle, Monorail and color TV. Times were changing fast, and by the mid-'60s Darigold was delivered directly to supermarkets in a new package called the milk carton.

THE '70s

The disco decade brought all-new packaging with the Darigold logo front and center. Darigold also introduced 'Dari-Lite' products, endorsed by six-foot-eleven inch Supersonics star Jack Sikma. Coincidentally, Jack also helped the Sonics to win their first NBA Championship in 1979.

THE '80s

Many remember '81 as the year of the Mt. St. Helens eruption. But it was also the year of a monumental merger between Darigold and Portland-based Mayflower Farms. Two years later Darigold's new Mt. Rainier package took to the shelves. By the early '90s, Darigold had again merged with the Dairymen's Creamer Association of Idaho.

THE '90s

While the rest of the country was asking 'Got Milk?' Darigold launched our 'Got Milkman?' Tour in 1998. Driving a restored DivCo milk truck, our milkman brought Darigold to the people with an air of surprise and nostalgia.

THE 2000s

Darigold packaging was again redesigned in the year 2000, this time with an inviting new look. The marketing campaign "Local Cows Working Hard" launched along with Smoooth the cow – a friendly bovine mascot for the Darigold brand.

FARMER OWNED

In 2010 Darigold farmers took a quick break to become the faces of our brand. The 'Farmer-Owned' ad campaign introduced our proud dairy farmers to the world. Darigold also introduced Refuel, a chocolate milk sports drink to help athletes refresh and recover.

FARMALICIOUS

Farmalicious is an unexpected word for doing dairy differently. It means pitchforks and dinner forks uniting to create delicious dairy inspired meals. The Darigold Farmalicious brand campaign launched in 2012 and includes tricked-out farm tractors, butter billboards, and an amazing corn maze.Darigold. It's farm meets delicious. It's Farmalicious.

DARIGOLD QUALITY & PRIDE

For nearly a century, the Darigold name has stood for quality, pride and farmer owners. Co-op members of what is now called the Northwest Dairy Association process and market their products through their subsidiary, Darigold, Inc. Headquartered in Seattle, Darigold is one of the largest U.S. dairy processors, with annual sales of over $2 billion. Darigold operates ten plants serving more than 500 independent dairy farm families. Darigold's wholesome products are always fresh and local. Generation after generation, Darigold farmers have taken pride in our products and our heritage. We've been making the Northwest's favorite brand of dairy since 1918.