thescoop – Fall 2021

FALL 2021 | VOLUME 3

HUNGER ACTION MONTH

DIVERSITY, EQUITY AND INCLUSION

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DFA 101: EVOLVING OUR DIVERSITY, EQUITY AND INCLUSION STRATEGY Our Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Advisory Council at DFA and how the council has evolved.

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

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PROTECTING DFA FROM CYBERCRIMINALS Steps the Information Technology (IT) Department has taken recently to keep DFA’s information safe.

BRAND TALK

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TAPPING INTO A NEW FLAVOR: OAKHURST MAPLE WHOLE MILK How Oakhurst® Dairy’s iconic Maple Whole Milk made its debut.

COOPERATIVE

DFA PARTICIPATES IN HUNGER ACTION MONTH 2021 This month, the Cooperative has been participating in Feeding America®’s Hunger Action Month. The goal of Hunger Action Month is to spread awareness, volunteer and donate to food banks in our communities that are helping combat food insecurity and hunger. Feeding America has a network of more than 200 food banks nationwide to help strengthen communities through food donations.

Hunger is prevalent in every community, whether it’s visible to you or not. Feeding America estimates that 42 million people are currently experiencing food insecurity. Rural families, senior citizens, people of color and other underserved groups are more likely to be affected. Hunger rates in communities have skyrocketed since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, and food banks have an increased need for donations and cold storage to accommodate the new demand.

How we’re helping In 2020, we established the Farmers Feeding Families Fund (FFFF) through the DFA Cares Foundation. Since its inception, FFFF has raised $740,000 and positively impacted 500 communities. To date, the fund has donated the equivalent of 24 million servings of milk to food banks across the nation.

This Hunger Action Month, we are continuing to be a part of the solution to food insecurity by growing a FFFF initiative to help food banks secure much-needed refrigeration to increase cold storage capacity.

DFA has a unique offering when it comes to participating in Hunger Action Month: Milk is one of the most requested, yet least donated items.

The perishable nature of fresh dairy products, along with the need for refrigeration and cold storage, makes it difficult for food pantries to keep in supply. It is not uncommon for food banks to turn down donations of dairy products either because the facility can’t store them long enough to give out, or because the food bank can’t ensure the products were stored properly prior to being donated.

Due to these unique circumstances, the Cooperative is continuing last year’s efforts to donate refrigerators to 21 food banks and 2

thescoop | Fall 2021

facilitate monetary donations through FFFF to keep those fridges stocked through 2021.

What you can do Throughout this month, we are asking our employees to be advocates for people facing hunger in their communities by volunteering at local food banks, raising awareness through social media or word-of-mouth, donating to organizations fighting hunger through DFA Cares and reducing their household food waste.

A pillar of our community giving efforts is to deliver nutritious dairy products to families in need. This year, we implemented a new way for employees to sign up for automatic payroll deductions of any amount toward DFA Cares. To sign up for a payroll deduction, visit dfacaresdeductions.com. When you sign up for this payroll deduction, you’re helping our FFFF efforts by facilitating dairy purchases for food banks, donating refrigeration to food banks that would benefit from increased cold storage capacity and facilitating donations of shelf-stable dairy products, like milk powders, to families in need domestically and overseas. In addition, you can can also help DFA Cares in natural disaster relief and providing scholarships to students interested in pursuing careers in dairy.

Helping all year We encourage you to help us make this cause a year-long issue — not just during Hunger Action Month.

Ways you can participate all year: • Volunteer. Food banks need volunteers and donations year-round • Be mindful of your food purchases to reduce food waste • Sign up for payroll deductions toward DFA Cares As a dairy Cooperative, we have so much to give. Let’s make sure food banks have access to and can safely store nutritious dairy products for people experiencing food insecurity all year.

DIVERSITY, EQUITY AND INCLUSION

DFA 101: EVOLVING OUR DIVERSITY, EQUITY AND INCLUSION STRATEGY The Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Advisory Council at DFA was formed in 2020. At such a tumultuous time in our country’s history — amid an isolating pandemic and what seemed like a breaking point in the social climate — DFA leadership identified the need for employees to come together, evaluate the state of our Cooperative and identify priorities for fostering a more diverse and inclusive DFA community.

Guiding priorities for diversity and inclusion In their first year, the council — made up of 22 employees from across the country and Cooperative — assessed the current state of diversity and inclusion at DFA, identified priority areas for improvement and began building a foundation for a long-term strategy. Their priorities fall into five buckets: talent acquisition and recruiting, communication and feedback, employee engagement and retention, training and education, and community engagement.

During the Cooperative’s first Diversity and Inclusion Week in July 2020, we announced the decision to incorporate equity into our name and strategy — previously the Diversity and Inclusion Advisory Council.

Each pillar is different and deserving of its own recognition.

• Diversity is defined as the recognition and acknowledgement that there are differences among us • Inclusion is feeling like a valued, welcomed and trusted member of the team • Equity is the fair treatment, access, opportunity and advancement for all people, and is an essential pillar to the success of each member of the DFA community individually and all together Cherrese Belt, director, human resources and DEI lead at DFA, says, “Tying ‘equity’ into our strategy for DEI is key. Equity allows us to focus on the needs of each person, what it takes for them to be successful each day and understanding that the need might be different across the board.

It is important that we understand that equality focuses on giving the same resources, tools and opportunities to all while equity recognizes that each person is different and focuses on providing tailored resources and opportunities so that we can reach an equal outcome. It is truly about building awareness on the varying needs of our employees across the Cooperative, and it is exciting that we are continuing to take steps in the right direction.”

Progress made and plans for the future During 2021, DFA has made strides in each of the priority areas identified by the council with the awareness that continuous evaluation and improvement is paramount in each of these efforts.

Progress includes: • Enhanced our partnership with diversity recruitment organizations and rolled out education and training supporting diversity and inclusion topics. Also began developing branding measures to better support hiring efforts and to build and retain internal talent • Onboarded more than 150 diversity and inclusion ambassadors representing more than 54 locations by facilitating training, providing resources and equipping ambassadors with tools to be successful • Launched a DEI page on dfamilk.com to showcase our efforts to page viewers, an audience that includes family farm-owners, employees, consumers, customers, potential employees and more • Recognized our first Diversity and Inclusion Week to bring awareness and emphasize our culture of inclusion and community We look forward to: • Partnering with a more diverse array of organizations to donate time and funds to underserved communities through our Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Scholarship Fund • Implementing action plans based on feedback from our Employee Engagement Survey conducted earlier this year • Providing employees with more opportunities to share their stories, gain more knowledge and continue fostering a workplace environment that is welcoming and inclusive • Launching a DEI training video for new hires to further their understanding of DEI in the workplace “With the partnership and support of DFA leadership, the DEI Advisory Council, DEI ambassadors and employees across the Cooperative, we’re excited to continue our journey to a more diverse, equitable and inclusive Cooperative for all,” Cherrese says. “You can join the movement by connecting with council members and ambassadors at your location, checking out our DEI page on The Parlor under the Life at DFA tab and making an effort in your day-to-day role to foster inclusion and embrace diversity.”

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COMMERCIAL

THE CREAMERY’S EXPERIENTIAL ROOM TEACHES THE FARM TO TABLE STORY When customers leave The Creamery, our retail store in Beaver, Utah, it’s safe to say they’re heading back on the road with a full stomach and a few bags of gourmet cheese curds. But if visitors have a little extra time, The Creamery also offers something even better — an interactive, kid-friendly experiential room where visitors can learn about the process of getting fresh dairy products from farm to table.

Before The Creamery opened at its current location, the store was attached to our plant next door where its cheese is made. Customers could look through a viewing window into the plant and witness the cheesemaking process firsthand. When The Creamery store expanded onto a new piece of property adjacent to the preexisting plant, the team had to get creative to deliver that same educational touchpoint to customers.

“The intention of the experiential room from the beginning was to give consumers a connection with the cheesemaking process that happens at the plant right behind the store,” says Marie teVelde, senior director of retail operations and marketing at The Creamery.

The Creamery partnered with Michaline Tomich, president and creative director of Mixdesign, Inc. to design and execute the installation of the new experiential room. The design process lasted several months, and Michaline made sure she took time to understand the essence of the brand and the customer experience at The Creamery before starting.

“The project room really made for a great canvas,” Michaline says. “The team allowed us to have fun with it, so the room really came to life quickly. We were able to think in two and three dimensions, as well as teach cheesemaking with interactive play. We allowed wall illustrations to flow onto the floor and into natural photo opportunities, too. It may have started off as a smaller footprint, but it landed with big creative, playful impact, which is always fun.”

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When guests enter the room, a life-size fiberglass Holstein of Lily, The Creamery’s mascot cow, greets them. Lily sits atop a platform, perfect for taking pictures of the kiddos, and she has milkable udders through a vacuum pump unit for guests to interact with.

Beyond Lily, guests can immerse themselves into the educational and hands-on experiences built exclusively for The Creamery. Two educational videos play in the room: one about farming and one about cheesemaking, and a special table with built-in touchscreens holds a game to simulate the cheese curd-making process. The entire room is wrapped in vinyl, with fun facts about cheesemaking and dairy farming printed floor to ceiling. Prime photo opportunities are everywhere — both Lily and the tractor are big hits with guests.

“The tractor is kid-sized, but I see a lot of adults hop into that tractor to get their photo taken,” Marie says.

The experiential room has been extremely well-received by visitors of The Creamery. Because of Beaver’s location, it’s a popular stopping point for people traveling to and from Las Vegas and Salt Lake City. Road tripping families appreciate the opportunity to not only stop and eat, but also to let their children blow off steam in an educational, fun environment.

While they may have pulled over just expecting a quick pit stop, families leave The Creamery with a deeper understanding of dairy farming and memories that will last a lifetime.

“There is such a lack of connection to farms anymore,” Marie says.

“Most people don’t have the ability to visit farms or have family members who are into agriculture. The educational need for the general population is large, and The Creamery has an opportunity to try to meet this need through its experiential room. ”

SUSTAINABILITY

ST. ALBANS CREAMERY & SUPPLY SUPPORTS SUSTAINABILITY WITH COMMUNITY COMPOSTING On any given day, you can find community members of the St. Albans, Vt., area, using the compost bins available at St. Albans Creamery & Supply to sustainably dispose of their household food scraps at no charge. St. Albans Creamery & Supply provides customers — including our family farmowners — with everything from feed and fencing to gardening supplies and groceries, including a multitude of dairy products, and is a sister store to The Creamery, our retail store in Beaver, Utah.

Ingredients Solutions Division, and St. Albans Creamery & Supply are committed to continuing sustainability efforts within their facilities and the community and representing the DFA family well.

The state of Vermont unanimously passed Act 148 in 2012, a universal recycling law banning food scraps from entering landfills starting in 2020.

In 2018, the St. Albans Creamery & Supply store partnered with the Northwest Solid Waste District to introduce a composting program to serve its community, and residents have jumped at the opportunity. Since making the composting bins available to the community, the frequency of pickups has doubled, and the number of bins offered has increased.

She says the composting project is especially exciting because of the community involvement it fosters.

“From our plants to our offices to our family farms, DFA has a strong commitment to sustainability and we’re proud to support these initiatives,” Kiersten says.

“Vermont has a strong reputation for being green and sustainable,” she says.

“People around here walk the walk. Vermonters really embrace that.”

“I was approached by a gentleman from Northwest Solid Waste District who was a shopper of our store,” Danielle Macaulay, floor manager of St. Albans Creamery & Supply, says of the initial idea to provide the bins to community members. “He thought that this would be a good site because of the involvement that we’ve had with the community.”

As an avid composter at home already, Danielle says she was excited to pioneer the program to encourage composting and expand the items residents can compost. Certain food scraps — such as bones, for example, can’t be composted at home without being heated to high temperatures first. Through the composting program at the store, residents can dispose of typically hard-to-compost items like bones, eggshells and animal fats.

Since St. Albans Creamery & Supply functions as a grocery store for some in its surrounding rural community, offering free composting bins on-site to anyone in the area ensures the process is convenient and accessible.

“It was nice to think that we could get out ahead of the curve as far as changing people’s behavior toward their kitchen compost,” Danielle says.

In addition to supporting the local community, the program also directly ties to DFA’s sustainability efforts. Kiersten Bourgeois, communications manager, says that both our St. Albans plant, which is part of the

Danielle Macaulay, floor manager of St. Albans Creamery & Supply in St. Albans, Vt., adds sawdust to the store’s compost bins to help deodorize them. Community members can sustainably dispose of their household food scraps at no charge in the bins.

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INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

PROTECTING DFA FROM CYBERCRIMINALS Traditional usernames and passwords can be stolen, and they’ve become increasingly more vulnerable to malicious activities. To protect employees and DFA, the Information Technology Department recently implemented multifactor authentication, a security feature that requires employees to enter another form of verification to prove their identity — such as a code sent to their phone. Many banks, social media accounts and other sites have implemented multifactor authentication to help make passwords more secure.

“Multifactor authentication is designed to make it a lot harder for cybercriminals to steal your information,” says Sherry Callahan, chief information security officer.

In fact, Sherry says that an estimated 85% of data breaches begin with stolen passwords — and multifactor authentication is designed to address that specific problem.

“Passwords aren’t secure enough anymore,” she says. “As humans, we have behavioral tendencies that contribute to this — we like passwords that are easy to remember, or we reuse passwords for multiple websites. Cybercriminals have automated tools that are effective at finding and guessing passwords.”

Even if a cybercriminal successfully gained access to a password, multifactor authentication ensures they can’t log in without the additional verification code.

“By implementing multifactor authentication, Microsoft® estimates that we will stop 99.9% of password-based attacks,” Sherry says. “This is a huge step forward for the entire Cooperative to ensure DFA is secure.”

Outside of protecting your DFA account, you can also set up multifactor authentication on your personal accounts, such as your email and bank account, a tip Sherry says everyone should do.

Be on the lookout for more ways you can stay safe online during October, which is National Cybersecurity Awareness Month.

BRAND TALK

TAPPING INTO A NEW FLAVOR: OAKHURST MAPLE WHOLE MILK It all started with a poll on social media. Oakhurst® Dairy, DFA’s beloved dairy brand based in northern New England that produces fluid milk, flavored milk, fresh cream, juice and tea, asked consumers to weigh in on what funky, fresh flavors of whole milk they’d be willing to try.

Inspired by the results, Oakhurst quickly captured consumers’ attention by introducing some unexpected varieties. It started with Wild Blueberry Milk in the summer of 2018, and then, they tested taste buds with their now familiar flavor: Maple Whole Milk.

With renewed interest in the health benefits of whole milk and the love for exciting flavors, Oakhurst has continued to expand its line of flavored premium whole milks.

Originally introduced for a limited time in the fall of 2020, Maple Whole Milk reappeared on shelves from January through May 2021. The idea is for Oakhurst’s line of flavored milks — wild blueberry, chocolate, coffee and the iconic maple — to rotate throughout the seasons, delighting consumers all year long.

Like all its flavored milks, Oakhurst’s Maple Whole Milk doesn’t require any secret ingredients — just whole milk, 100% pure maple syrup sourced locally from Bascom Family Farms of New Hampshire and a little coloring that gives it a caramel tint. Maine is a top producer of maple syrup in the United States, so it’s only fitting that Oakhurst introduced the flavor to its whole milk lineup.

The product is sold in pint and quart sizes and can be found at Wal-Mart, Hannaford, Market Basket and in other local shops in northern New England.

To learn more about Oakhurst, visit www.oakhurstdairy.com.

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EMPLOYEE SPOTLIGHT

COOPERATIVE

MARIO RAMIREZ

WHAT’S COMING UP

Since his first day of work at our Oak Farms® Dairy plant in Dallas, Texas, in 1979, Jose Mario Ramirez, who goes by Mario, has worked his way up to his title of senior utility operator — and he’s embodied DFA’s core values of integrity, passion, quality and community every step of the way.

Mario began his career at our Oak Farms plant, which produces cream, fluid milk and fruit juices, as a filler operator. He worked in that position for 21 years. Now, as senior utility operator, Mario oversees workers in the plant to ensure operations meet cleanliness and quality standards, which is a process he says he and his team take very seriously.

“Oak Farms has a good work environment with good companions,” Mario says. “We all work as a team to obtain good results and ensure that the products are of high quality.”

During a typical day, you can find Mario arriving right on time to check the milk tanks for cleanliness to ensure they are ready to be filled with product. Mario also checks that the product dates are accurate and all the machinery is in working order.

Throughout his 42 years at our Oak Farms plant, Mario has made an impression on everyone he works with.

“Mario is a team player, and he works positively to get the job done in the best way possible, which is what everyone likes about him,” says Victor Gutierrez, production supervisor at our Oak Farms plant.

Mario spends most of his time outside of work with his wife and three children. He likes to play baseball, and he also loves music — he even used to play in a band.

“One piece of advice I would give to new workers would be to always be punctual and try your best to do your job well,” Mario says.

Mark your calendars.

Hispanic Heritage Month Sept. 15–Oct. 15 A month-long celebration of the histories, cultures and contributions of Hispanic communities in the United States.

Team Development Conference 2021 Sept. 28–30, 2021 Focused on team leaders at DFA, this virtual event is an opportunity for colleagues across the Cooperative to connect, communicate about key initiatives and reinforce our purpose and culture.

Cybersecurity Awareness Month October 2021 To help us learn more about safety and security online, the information security team within the Information Technology (IT) Department will share tips on how to stay safe online.

Employees can complete training, learn more and win prizes by participating in the month’s activities.

National Cooperative Month October 2021 A month dedicated to sharing our pride for our Cooperative and our hardworking family farm-owners.

Open Enrollment Nov. 2–16, 2021 (dates are subject to change) Employees eligible for company-sponsored benefits can enroll.

Performance and Development Cycle/Self-Evaluations Due Nov. 15–Dec. 7 (dates are subject to change) As a performance-driven organization, we are committed to providing every employee with ongoing performance and development discussions.

CULTURE

HALF & HALF FALL 2021 ISSUE HITTING MAILBOXES

FA L L 20 21 FA L L 2021

The fall 2021 issue of Half & Half, our magazine celebrating dairy and those who make it, is on its way to your home — if it hasn’t arrived already. Among other articles and recipes, this edition features sticky, sweet caramel apples, a classic cheese fondue recipe, a farm family that runs a certified-organic maple syrup operation in addition to their dairy and a look at the next generation of dairy farmers.

Want to share the goodness of Half & Half? Gift a subscription to a friend or family member. Employees can use coupon code FALLEMP2021 at halfandhalfmag.com/subscribe to receive 25% off an annual subscription.

Pan Dulce A Family Affair Hot Potato Sweet & Sticky Hot Potatopg. 17 pg. 68 pg. 6 Sweet & Stickypg. 25 pg. 6 A Family Affair pg. 17 Pan Dulce pg. 25 pg. 68

Help spread the word about the goodness of Half & Half. Be sure to follow Half & Half on Instagram, Facebook and Pinterest for more recipes and inspiration, and tell your friends and family to follow us, too. thescoop | Fall 2021

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INNOVATION

THE MODERN MILKMAN BRINGS BACK FRESH DAIRY DELIVERIES DFA family farm-owner Seth Bahler saw an opportunity to deliver his farm’s fresh milk to consumers through its own private label and founded The Modern Milkman in 2019. With the launch of the delivery company, Seth, chief executive officer of The Modern Milkman and Oakridge Dairy, his farm in Ellington, Conn., brought back the nostalgic experience of receiving deliveries of fresh milk in glass bottles straight to consumers’ doors.

The company had humble beginnings — one employee would bottle the pasteurized milk from Seth’s dairy farm, and then deliver that milk to customers. And it all came about because of requests from locals.

“People kept asking how they could buy our milk, and all of our milk went to a plant locally,” Seth says. “We said ‘Let’s get some milk in our own label.’ And looking into how people are buying, everyone is buying online. Online ordering is the future, and delivery is the future, so let’s just bring a blast from the past and put a modern twist on it.”

As a DFA family farm-owner, the milk from Seth’s farm goes to our Guida’s Dairy plant in New Britain, Conn. However, Seth buys back a small portion of his production to process for bottling for deliveries through The Modern Milkman.

Since founding The Modern Milkman, the company has grown. During the COVID-19 lockdowns in March 2020, The Modern Milkman gained 100 customers every day for several weeks — going from 300 customers to 3,000 customers in two months. This growth inspired Seth to partner with other local businesses that provide fresh, high-quality products.

The Modern Milkman now offers eggs, butter, cheese, breads and cookies all sourced from local vendors.

Customers can utilize the online subscription service through The Modern Milkman website, modernmilkman.com, where they can sign up to receive weekly deliveries with servings for a family of four, six or eight. By designing The Modern Milkman as a subscription service, Seth helped solve a problem in his community that he’s passionate about: food waste.

“When we first built [the business], we realized that a lot of people will not need a delivery every week, but we wanted that consistency,” Seth says. “We wanted people to get it every week, but we wanted them to be able to pause it, or if they were feeling generous, they could donate it. It helps us with our inventory as a farm, but it also provides an opportunity to donate to a local food pantry. We’ve donated thousands of pounds of dairy products to local food pantries — they love it because they are getting fresh, higher quality local products each week. About 50 people each week donate their deliveries.”

Seth hopes to expand The Modern Milkman in the coming years. The company entered into a licensing agreement with a farm in Ohio, and Seth says he’s willing to continue licensing his subscription service to more farms and branch out into new areas of the country. The Modern Milkman might start offering a wider range of fresh, local products, too, including meat.

The Modern Milkman participated in DFA’s 2021 CoLAB Accelerator, our 90-day program to help accelerate and grow startup businesses in the dairy sector. The 2021 class included seven participating companies.

“We got to be in a group of startups getting some great feedback and advice on how to position our business better for the future from some very smart people,” Seth says. He also enjoyed meeting and learning from employees within DFA and our regional brands.

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