In 1994 Tony and Maria Barros relocated their family to Nowata, Oklahoma, from Brazil to purchase and run a cattle business named Canaan Ranch. The Barros family has a long history of appreciating and consuming yogurt as an important part of their daily diet. When the Barros family first moved to the United States, they could not find a yogurt they loved and began making their own.
Tony is also a professional pilot and traveled to France on a regular basis over the years. He soon developed relationships with French yogurt craftsmen and learned how to make traditional “French Style Yogurt.”
After practicing on friends and family for five years, the Barros family built a small commercial yogurt production facility named Amelia Creamery after their first grandchild. The creamery began production in 2017 and produces small batches of high-end French yogurt made from locally sourced cow’s milk.
Flavors and Branding
The yogurt is available in more than 11 different flavors, ranging from common flavors such as strawberry and mixed berry to more extravagant flavors such as decadent chocolate and guava. The yogurt is sold in quart containers or in Amelia Creamery’s signature single serve clay jars. The jars have become just as important for their brand as their logo. They can be repurposed, unlike most plastic containers.
Business Assistance
The OSU Food & Agricultural Products Center (FAPC) has partnered with Amelia Creamery in a multitude of ways over the years. The Barros family began using FAPC to generate nutrition fact panels for their products and as a sounding board for new flavors and product development.
Despite being a product that has been made for centuries, yogurt can be a difficult product to produce as it is a refrigerated, ready-to-eat food. FAPC has worked with Amelia’s on production efficiencies as well as Good Manufacturing Practices to problem-solve the many challenges related to yogurt production.
Expansion Now
Business is good and Amelia’s Creamery is outgrowing its current facility. The FAPC is working with the company to develop plans for a larger yogurt plant to increase production volume in the next few years.
Amelia’s products can be purchased at many grocery stores across Oklahoma, Kansas, Arkansas and in metro areas of Texas.