Published: Tuesday, Nov. 10, 2009

Updated: Tuesday, Nov. 10, 2009

Dakin milk sold at retail chains

MYAKKA CITY — After a few months of testing in its Sarasota store, Whole Foods Market is offering locally-produced milk from Dakin Dairy Farms at all 16 of its Florida locations.

And Sweetbay Supermarkets, another big retailer that sells the Dakin brand of all-natural milk, is finding it frequently sells out of the product.

In July, when Dakin began bottling and selling some of its own milk, Whole Foods Markets snapped it up for testing at its Sarasota location. Sweetbay announced it would stock the brand in nine regional stores to gauge its appeal.

Both big retailers report stellar results, officials said.

“I can tell you the test marketing in our Sarasota store, it couldn’t have gone better,” said Russ Benblatt, regional marketing director for Whole Foods Market. “Customers were thrilled to get it and we gladly made space for it. Literally in some stores, it was disappearing the second we put it out.”

But there were other reasons why shoppers liked the product.

“It is a phenomenal milk, but also people want to support local agriculture, farming and the local economy, and that’s what buying the Dakin milk does,” he said.

“It’s something we as a company have been passionate about for 30 years and our customers are equally passionate about it, too.”

Sweetbay Supermarkets is noting similar results, said Nicole LeBeau, a spokeswoman for the supermarket chain.

“It sells out very quickly, obviously there’s a big demand in that market,” she said.

Dakin Dairy Farms is near Myakka City, on land where the Dakin family has been milking cows since 1973.

Cameron, Farren and Jerry Dakin own the three remaining dairy farms in the county, and their innovative approach to the dairy business has placed them among the top of the nearly 150 dairies remaining in Florida, said Karen Dakin, Jerry’s wife and co-owner of one of the farms.

In an effort to survive the recession, the Dakins added a new plant and began bottling some of their own milk, which previously was shipped to Miami for processing.

The cows are fed fresh green grass and the pesticide-free product is bottled within hours of milking, said Karen Dakin.

“You simply can’t beat fresh,” she said.

Dakin milk also is sold at the dairy itself, at 30771 Betts Road, at Sweetbay Supermarkets in the area, and at a handful of other local outlets. For information, go to www.DakinDairyFarms.com or call (941) 322-2802.

Sara Kennedy, Herald reporter, can be reached at (941) 745-7031.