The best-tasting buttermilk and lowfat strawberry yogurt in New York State come from Upstate Niagara Cooperative’s plants in Cheektowaga and West Seneca, respectively.

Cornell University’s Department of Food Science honored the cooperative’s products at the New York State Fair’s Dairy Day on Aug. 30. The annual selection is part of the New York State Quality Improvement program and enjoys participation from nearly all commercial dairy producers in New York State.

To top this, the World Dairy Expo Championship Dairy Product Contest awarded the Gold Medal to the cooperative for its newly introduced Upstate Farms Lowfat Blended All-Natural Vanilla Yogurt, which scored a perfect 100 at the evaluation by a panel of expert judges.

This year, the Wisconsin Dairy Products Association, the contest’s sponsor, received a record number of 655 entries for various dairy product categories from throughout the United States. This award will be presented on Sept. 28, in Madison, Wis., when all category first-place winner products will be auctioned off to support the Dr. Robert Bradley Scholarship Fund established to help a deserving student pursuing a career in the dairy industry.

Ken Voelker, director of marketing at Upstate Niagara Cooperative, pointed out that “Winning the gold in several categories reflects our Western New York member farmers’ commitment to produce the best milk and dairy products possible. We look forward to continue enhancing the quality of the products that we deliver throughout the U.S.”