In the past few years, society has turned a critical eye to the way food products are made. Driven by the rising obesity crisis in the Western world, people started wondering why so many more people were overweight now than a decade or century ago.
While access to food as definitely improved, much of the reasoning behind this strange shift in weights is due to the quality of food.
Now, more than ever before, companies that manufacture foods are using more and more preservatives in their products, taking out the nutrients and all the good stuff that food is supposed to have.
As society has realized that the quality of food has decreased over the years, some of the ingredients these companies put in their foods has come out to the public.
Some of the most horrific perpetrators were those in the dairy industry.
Milks were found to be filled with hormones that had been closely tied to cancer.
Cheeses weren’t actually made from milk, but were strange inventions made in the labs. And the problems with the dairy industry grew and grew, with people growing more and more angry at what they had been fed over the years.
While many milk companies struggled once their lack of quality became known to the public, all this talk about poor quality dairy products allowed other companies, those that had stayed true to the quality of their products, to truly shine. And one of the biggest stars in this situation was Tillamook.
Based in Oregon, Tillamook is a company that has sold dairy products for decades. However, unlike other companies, Tillamook never compromised when it came to quality.
In fact, the quality and taste of Tillamook products have remained very much the same since it started, back on a farm over 100 years ago.
About Tillamook
As mentioned above, Tillamook is a dairy company based in the farmland of Oregon. In the century that the creameries in Tillamook have been make cheese, ice cream, and selling milk, the company has stayed dedicated to a very strict set of standards.
Because the company is run by farmers, the foundation of Tillamook has always been supporting hardworking Americans while providing the highest quality products possible to other hardworking Americans.
Named after the county in which it is found, Tillamook actually means Land of Many Waters. While the name may seem a bit strange to some, the truth behind it still remains. Because Tillamook Valley is surrounded by rivers, bays, and even an ocean, it is a very fertile area in the country.
What makes this so important is that because Tillamook is so green and fertile, it is able to provide the best, natural grass for its cows. And it’s these cows that have been providing the company with quality milk since the 18th century.
While the recipe for the cheddar cheese that made Tillamook so famous was brought out to Oregon in 1894, it wasn’t until 1909 that the company really started to form.
It was in 1909 that all the small creameries that existed in the Tillamook Valley came together to form the Tillamook County Creamery Association. And that year, the association crafted their first official Tillamook cheese, made from the best local milk with the highest quality ingredients.
Over the past 107 years, the face of Tillamook has definitely changed. Instead of being several creameries, the company is now a large factory. However, a few things have remained very much the same when it comes to Tillamook.
The first is that it will always make its products using its own, local cows. Not only does this assure the quality of all Tillamook products, but it also assures consistency.
Secondly, Tillamook has and will never compromise the quality of its products by using questionable ingredients or trying to take shortcuts. For Tillamook, it has always been about quality over quantity or profit.
What Makes Tillamook Different
The number one reason Tillamook is so different from other milk companies is that it is an independently, farmer owned company. Because Tillamook is run by the people who are passionate about dairy, it has been supported by their hard work and their commitment to quality.
No one knows the benefits of hard, honest work more than an American farmer. And it’s because American farmers make up Tillamook that the company has long been loved by cheese, ice cream, and yogurt lovers across the world.
Hand in hand with the quality that Tillamook has dedicated itself to is what the company believes when it comes to make its products.
As mentioned above, many dairy companies in the United States were caught using questionable ingredients, some of which had been scientifically proven to be harmful to human health. Tillamook, however, believes strongly in the quality of its products.
This means that no matter what, Tillamook products will contain natural ingredients, because artificial just isn’t acceptable.
As mentioned above, Tillamook was started when several small creameries joined together to create an association. While Tillamook is now a huge factory that is able to meet the needs of all its customers, the foundation of the company is still very much tied to its community.
Tillamook is still run as a co-op, with all the farms in the little valley supporting the company.
The best part about this type of business is that it is made up of families, hard workers who grew up on farms, loving their cows, and loving what they did. No other milk company in America has the passion that Tillamook farmers have, because no other company has the history these farmers have.
Finally, Tillamook is famous for its factory tours. Not only does Tillamook stand by a strict set of standards when it comes to quality, but it opens its doors to customers so they can come in and check for themselves.
At the Tillamook factory in Oregon, dairy lovers can go in and learn all about the history of the company. They can also tour the factory, taste testing and exploring all the different aspects of Tillamook. It’s this level of transparency that has made Tillamook such a household name.
Products Sold by Tillamook
While the Tillamook factory started out making cheese, the milk provided by the Tillamook cows is now used in a wide range of products.
However, despite the growth of the company, the quality of these products has never changed. In fact, many customers of Tillamook praise its products for tasting the same now as it did when they were kids, 30 to 50 years ago.
The categories of products offered by Tillamook, though they come in many different flavors, are listed below.
– Cheese
– Ice Cream
– Yogurt
– Sour Cream
– Butter
It used to be that only those who lived around the Tillamook farms were able to get access to the amazing products it offered.
However, Tillamook recently opened an online store, accessible from the company website (www.Tillamook.com).
Now, people across the country can taste the amazing quality of Tillamook products. The website also includes a store finder, so those who want to find Tillamook products in a store near them can do a search and find the store closest to them carrying the products.
