Organic Dairy Farms

Straus Family Organic Dairy Farm — Where It All Started

The Straus family legacy started in 1941 with Straus Family Dairy Farm in the small town of Marshall, CA, along the shores of Tomales Bay on the Northern California Coast. Our Founder Albert Straus grew up on the family farm that his father Bill Straus started with only 23 Jersey cows.

After earning a B.S. in Dairy Science, Albert returned home and took over the management of the dairy farm with his father and converted the farm to organic in 1994—Straus Dairy Farm became the first certified organic dairy farm west of the Mississippi River. In this same year, Albert founded Straus Family Creamery. This created a marketplace for organic dairy milk on the West Coast with the first 100% certified organic creamery in the United States.

Albert Straus will implement a carbon-neutral dairy farming model with net zero emissions on his farm. Additionally, he plans to extend this carbon-neutral farming model to the supplying dairy farms by 2030. Organic farming and livestock agriculture are essential to the success of this model.

Expanding Organic Dairy Farming Community, Carbon Neutrality

Straus Family Creamery currently buys certified organic, non-GMO verified milk from 13 certified organic family farms in Northern California: Straus Dairy Farm, the two Tresch family dairy farms, the Hughes, Correia, Silacci, Mendoza, and Silva dairies, plus Drakes View Dairy, JJ’s Family Dairy, Moretti Family Dairy, Robert McClelland Dairy, and Nosecchi Family Dairy. These relationships strengthen the community of family farms in Marin and Sonoma Counties by providing stable pricing as well as strong personal alliances with each milk supplier. Straus Family Creamery launched an incentive program and road map in 2023 to help its supplying dairy farms reach carbon neutrality by 2030.

Meet the Dairy Farmers

The 13 certified organic dairy farms that provide organic milk to our Creamery are in Marin and Sonoma Counties north of San Francisco. The location is known for its mild, coastal climate, pristine coastal grassland and fresh marine air. These qualities give cows sweet grasses to graze that is reflected in the rich and unique flavor of the milk.

The small-scale family farms, with an average herd size of 250 cows per farm, are approximately within 30 miles from our Creamery in Sonoma County.