history of soy yogurt, soy acidophilus milk and other ... - SoyInfo Center

and Morningstar fi rst began to work with soy. The fi rst
development of formulation for Silk soymilk was done at
Gustine. Ann knows Ted extremely well.
On the front of the building where Ann works is
written “Morningstar Foods” in large letters; below that
in smaller letters is written “Avoset.” Gustine is near
Merced, California. Morningstar and Suiza have their
corporate headquarters in the same building in Dallas,
Texas. For information on Sun Soy (which is sold at Ralph’s
supermarkets in southern California), contact Patty Herbeck
(phone: 214-303-3400) in Dallas. Wildwood soymilk is also
made at the Gustine plant. They also package products for
Trader Joe’s. At Morningstar’s yogurt plant in Fullerton,
they package soy yogurts for Ted Nordquist and Trader
Joe’s. Address: Research Dep., Morningstar Foods (a Suiza
Company), 299 Fifth Ave., Gustine, California 95322.
Phone: 209-854-6461.
1211. Demos, Steve. 2000. New developments at White
Wave (Interview). SoyaScan Notes. July 31. Conducted by
William Shurtleff of Soyfoods Center.
• Summary: Steve actually did live in a cave for one month
outside of Rishikesh, India in the 1970s–but he never told
anyone in the soyfoods industry about it until he told CNN
Financial News [1 March 2000]. They “ran with it.”
Silk is now in 24,000 supermarkets nationwide. Dean
Foods supplied the slotting money, both otherwise White
Wave basically got into the stores using its own sales force.
White Wave does not now use, and never has used, the Dean
Foods distribution system. Rather, they ship Silk from the
factory where it is made to the supermarket warehouse.
Getting into supermarkets was like running a 100-yard
dash; the only competitor was Suisa, whose Sunsoy soymilk
is now in about 50% of supermarkets in the USA. Suisa
now has about 4% of the market. The next race is to take
soymilk to the national media; this is more than a 44 yard
dash. White Wave will be spending about $10 million on this
media campaign. Their goal is to develop “top of the mind
awareness” or TOMA, so that when people hear the word
“soy” they think “Silk.”
In the natural foods trade all Westsoy products still have
a larger market share than all the Silk products.
During the next few weeks White Wave will launch a
new version of Silk soy yogurt, a cultured yogurt with live
cultures, made at a dairy in the USA. It will be sold in a new
carton–an aseptic single-serving plastic cup.
Steve has learned several key things from people at
Dean Foods. First, how to manage data, especially market
statistics, and to use them in making decisions, allocating
marketing dollars, and targeting interested populations.
Second, Steve has a mentor at Dean Foods, Lou Nietto, who
is teaching him about the mainstream food business. Lou got
his MBA from Harvard Business School and came to Dean
Foods from Kraft. White Wave grew up in the natural foods
HISTORY OF SOY YOGURT & CULTURED SOYMILK 467
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industry, but they are no longer primarily in this business.
They talk by phone once a month, and phone and person
once a quarter. Lou really believes in White Wave’s products,
concept, and entrepreneurial spirit. “We turned their heads.”
Silk is certainly one of the fastest growing products in
the food industry in recent times, and may be the fastest.
Steve is the second child in his family; his elder brother
is a surgeon. Address: President, White Wave Inc., 1990
North 57th Court, Boulder, Colorado 80301.
1212. Product Name: Trader Joe’s Cultured Soy Beverage
[Peach, and Strawberry].
Manufacturer’s Name: Trader Joe’s (Marketer-
Distributor).
Manufacturer’s Address: P.O. Box 3270, South Pasadena,
CA 91031-6270. Phone: 818-441-1177.
Date of Introduction: 2000. July.
Ingredients: Cultured soymilk (fi ltered water, organic
soybeans*, live cultures: Lactobacillus bulgaricus, S.
thermophilus, L. acidophilus, B. bifi dus), fruit juice
concentrate (pineapple, peach, and pear), peach puree,
natural fl avor, tapioca starch, annatto, turmeric
Wt/Vol., Packaging, Price: 16 fl . oz (480 ml) plastic bottle
retails for $1.99 (2000/08, Lafayette, California).
How Stored: Refrigerated.
New Product–Documentation: Product with Label
purchased at Trader Joe’s in Lafayette, California. 2000.
Aug. 10. This product was introduced in late July. Label:
Orange and white on a green and black background showing
soybeans in green pods. “Made with organic soybeans.
Soy protein: Contains 7 gm per serving. Shake well. No
preservatives. Perishable. Keep refrigerated.” On one side
panel is the soy-heart health claim plus: “Trader Joe’s
Cultured Soy Beverage is an all natural non dairy drink with
live and active yogurt cultures.” “Best by Sept. 16.” So it has
a refrigerated shelf life of about 5 weeks. Soyfoods Center
taste test. Flavor, texture, and appearance: A+. A delicious
new product.
Talk with Ted Nordquist. 2000. Aug. 18. He suggests
that I talk with Laura Lee, daughter of Ken Lee, of Soyfoods
of America; phone 626-358-3836. He is almost certain that
they make this product. Ted tasted it at the Natural Products
Expo at Anaheim, and thought it was excellent. They
actually had a prototype a year earlier. Ken Lee makes the
entire product himself, including the soy base; Ted’s base
is too expensive. Talk with Ken Lee, founder and owner
of Soyfoods of America. 2000. Aug. 18. This product was
developed by Tim Huang, who still works as a consult for
Ken, and now lives in Texas. It was introduced about two
weeks ago and is presently sold only under the Trader Joe’s
label. Ken has developed four fl avors, but TJ took only two.
Ken will soon develop the product under his own SoyWise
brand.