Dairy Processing - January/February 2023 - 17

things happened that deeply motivated me to
build a mission-led business that would create real
change. I was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis
(UC), an inflammatory bowel disease. My doctor
wanted me to live on harsh drugs for life and made
it clear that I would never cure the disease.
I pushed back and asked if diet modification
could have a positive impact and offer an
alternative therapy. The answer was a
resounding, 'No.' I immediately dismissed this,
met with an integrative doctor, and committed to a
three-year diet where I ate nothing but real foods.
My diet consisted of cultured dairy, other
fermented foods, grass-fed and organic meat,
cooked veggies and fruit. Within two months of
living on this diet, all my symptoms went away
without taking any drugs. Three years later,
my colonoscopy showed no sign of ulcertative
colitis. It was as if I never had the disease.
That said, I'm a big believer in food as medicine.
DP: What is the company's mission? How does this
impact company culture, practices and structure?
JM: Good Culture's mission is to change the
food system from the ground up, literally. We
are focused on creating whole-body wellness
by offering healthy, simple-ingredient, cultured
foods that are good for people, planet and
animals. This thinking informs every decision
we make as a company, from the family farms
that we work with, our focus on regenerative
agriculture and pasture-raised farming, supply
chain strategy, ingredient selection and more.
When I entered the dairy industry, I learned
that the majority of US dairy cows were
confined, creating both an animal welfare and
environmental problem. This broke my heart,
and I knew that I had to fight to change the food
system. Good Culture is dedicated to building
a supply chain that sources from regenerative
farms with a focus on planned grazing, where
animals are free to roam and are strategically
moved across pastures to create more productive
land. Planned grazing also contributes to
healthier soil. Healthier soil grows more nutrientdense
foods, creates more resiliency, sequesters
more carbon and leads to a more profitable
model and brighter future for our farmers.
Good Culture offers an elevated product
experience. We source all our milk from family
farms. Our products are only made with real
food and simple ingredients. We never use gums,
preservatives, stabilizers, etc., which makes our
product thick and creamy versus soupy and slimy.
Good Culture is naturally higher in quality protein
(we never use protein concentrates), and we only
use sea salt versus highly processed common
salt. Good Culture is available in multi-serve
and single-serve on-the-go cups. We also offer
several different flavor varieties in our single-serve
options, including our 3G line that only has 3
grams of sugar and 15 grams of protein.
We are a Certified B Corporation and 1% for
the Planet company - we donate 1% of net sales
from select products to support responsible
farming practices, including a focus on
regenerative ag and planned grazing.
DP: Good Culture aims to bring " real healing
foods " to people - what does that mean?
Good
Culture is
dedicated
to building
a supply
chain that
sources from
regenerative
farms with
a focus on
planned
grazing. "
Jesse Merrill, co-founder
and chief executive officer
DAIRYPROCESSING.COM | JAN-FEB 2023 17
©Vanessa Tierney Photography
http://www.DAIRYPROCESSING.COM
Dairy Processing - January/February 2023

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