FAQs

Get in touch

How do I get in touch?

• Please visit our contact page to get in touch. All the contact information required for product feedback, complaints, ideas, rewards, media and marketing can be found here.

Products

Are your products pasteurised?

• All Glenisk products are pasteurised.

Do your products contain live cultures?

• We add cultures to our yogurt after pasteurisation so that they are live reaching the gut.

What cultures do you use in Glenisk yogurts?

• At Glenisk, we work with a range of cultures and the mix will vary according to recipe. Our cultures include Lactobacillus casei; Lactobacillus rhamnoses; Lactobacillus bulgaricus; Streptococcus thermophilus; Bifidobacterium.

How much bacteria is in your yogurts?

• The typical cell count per g of bacteria is 10⁷ – 10⁸ live bacteria / gram of yogurt. Our calculations show that a 125g portion of our Bio Live yogurt contains more than 30 billion bacteria.

I would like information on the nutrient profile or ingredients of your yogurts.

• Ingredients and nutritional information for each product can be found here.

Are your yogurts sugar-free?

• No yogurt is sugar-free as milk, the main ingredient in yogurt, contains naturally occurring sugars in the form of lactose. Fruit, a key secondary ingredient in many yogurts, also contains naturally occurring sugar in the form of fructose. Many Glenisk yogurts contain no added sugar. These include all of our natural yogurts, all of our baby fromage frais and many of our kids’ yogurts.

How much added sugar is in your kids yogurts?

• We have been reducing or eliminating added sugar across all of our ranges for over a decade now. We think weaning infants do not need sugar added to their food and to do so only serves to condition their palates towards a preference for sweeter food. Our baby yogurts contain no added sugar.
  
  For older kids, our range includes options with a little added sugar and options with no added sugar. More information is included in the chart below.

• Much of the sugars that are in the yogurt are naturally occurring from milk or fruit. Where we add sugar, we make a point of listing the percentage of added sugars on the back of the pack.

What does Greek-Style yogurt mean?

• The term Greek-Style does not have a formal legal definition but is typically used to suggest a thicker yogurt akin to yogurts found in Greece. Only yogurts produced in Greece may be called Greek. Yogurts are typically thickened in one of three ways – by the addition of thickening agents like powder, by increasing the fresh cream in the yogurt to create a creamier texture, or by a traditional authentic straining method which uses many times more milk than regular yogurt.
  
  At Glenisk, we do not add thickening powders to our yogurts. Our organic greek style superior yogurt is made using fresh cream to create an especially creamy premium yogurt. Our organic high protein yogurt is made in the traditional authentic straining process. We use four times as much milk as a regular yogurt and the whey is strained away to make an especially thick yogurt, naturally very high in protein.

What is High Protein yogurt?

• Milk is a food that is naturally high in protein. It is also possible to produce yogurt that is extra high in protein either
  by fortifying it with thickening protein powders or by using an ancient straining process. At Glenisk, we don’t add
  thickeners to our yogurt. We make our organic high protein yogurt in the traditional authentic way. We use four times
  as much milk as a regular yogurt and the whey is strained away to make an especially thick yogurt, naturally very
  high in protein.

Are your products gluten free?

• All Glenisk’s yogurts are gluten-free. Our granola toppers may contain gluten.

Packaging

Can I recycle Glenisk products?

• All Glenisk packaging is recyclable. Place it in the green bin after washing and drying. The packaging is made from 100% renewable materials and is certified carbon neutral by Climate Partner. You can find out more about Glenisk’s sustainability initiatives including packaging here.

How is your packaging certified as carbon neutral or climate neutral?

• Primarily, we work with our packaging partners to find solutions that don’t include plastic derived from fossil fuels. Recent initiatives include removing plastic screw caps from our milk cartons switching our yogurt pots from plastic to paper; choosing protective liners that are made of green PE, from renewable sources like tree resin and switching out plastic trays in favour of pulp based shelf ready packaging. Once we’ve improved the packaging as much as we can, we work with Climate Partner to audit the carbon footprint of the improved packaging and certify it as climate neutral. We support Climate Partner’s programmes including reforestation in Europe, cleaner oceans in South America, sustainable cook-stoves in Africa and rainforest protection in Asia to protect Orang-Utan habitats. You can find out more about Glenisk’s sustainability initiatives here.

Organic

What is organic?

• Organic is a rigorously policed and certified system of agriculture, that restricts the use of artificial fertilisers and synthetic pesticides, and specifies a high standard of animal welfare. Organic foods help to protect the livelihood of small, family-run farms that keep the countryside varied, clean and full of wildlife. Organic cows frequently live to the age of 15 and enjoy a natural environment where calves feed from the udder rather than on artificial milk substitute. Organic farming also produces less carbon emissions and so helps reduce climate change.
• You can read more about it here.

Who certifies Glenisk as organic?

• Glenisk is certified by the Irish Organic Association (IOA). Our farmers are certified either by IOA or by the Organic Trust.

Isn’t all farming in Ireland organic?

• No. Organic is a very specific type and standard of farming. Currently only 2% of Ireland’s farming land is certified organic but the Government has plans to grow this significantly to help support Ireland’s climate action goals. Organic has a very specific meaning. Terms like “farm-fresh”, “natural”, “grass-fed”, “free-range” or “home-grown” do not mean organic. Some of these terms are simply marketing words that have no standard or certification attached to them. You can find out more about organic and its standards here.

Are your goats’ products organic?

Not currently. We are hoping to one day have the goat farms certified organic. Organic certification for goats presents some unique challenges but we are working through these. In the meantime, the farmers ensure the goats have access to outdoor space and do not use genetically modified food.

Goats’ & Dietary Sensitivity

Do your farmers use bovine growth hormones at Glenisk?

• Bovine or Caprine growth hormones are banned in the EU and are therefore not used by any farmers in Ireland.

Does your goats’ milk cure asthma/ eczema/ digestive complaints?

• If you are suffering from any of these complaints or believe you may have a food sensitivity or allergy, we recommend that you consult your GP or a specialist or dietitian.  For those with a sensitivity to cows’ milk, goats may offer an alternative as the protein structure differs between the milks. In our experience some people with sensitivity to cows’ dairy often tolerate goats’ milk very well. Symptoms including asthma, eczema or digestive discomfort/constipation etc. may be alleviated by switching to goats’ milk; this is based on testimonial and anecdotal evidence from our customers rather than scientifically proven information. You can find out more here.

Where to buy

Where can I buy Glenisk products?

• Glenisk stockists can be found here.

Ownership/ management

Who owns Glenisk?

Glenisk was founded in 1987 by Jack and Mary Cleary, on the site of the family farm just outside Tullamore in the centre of Ireland. In the mid 1990s, the next generation of Clearys took over the business, switched to organic and developed it into Ireland’s #1 Yogurt brand. In 2006, Stonyfield Europe acquired a minority shareholding in Glenisk and was acquired by Groupe DANONE. The Cleary family continue to own and operate Glenisk and are the majority shareholders.

Farmers

Where do you source your milk?

• We work with 50 small family farms across Ireland to source organic cows’ milk and goats’ milk for our products. You can find out more about our farmers here.

I would like to become an organic farmer/ a Glenisk supplier

• We are always looking to recruit new farmers into organic. To find out more, please contact [email protected] and include some information about your farm including location and herd size if applicable. Additional information on organics is available from the Irish Organic Association, Organic Trust, Department of Agriculture and Teagasc.

I would like to become a goats’ milk farmer/ a Glenisk supplier

• We are currently well supplied with goats’ milk. Please contact [email protected] for further information.

Job opportunities

How do I apply to work for Glenisk?

• All current vacancies are posted in our careers section. You can also contact [email protected]

Students

I’ve chosen Glenisk for my school / college project. Can you answer some questions for me?

• Thanks for choosing to study Glenisk. You will find some general information about our brand and business here.

• Due to the volume of requests we receive each week from students, we are unable to provide answers to questionnaires by email or to meet students in person or online. We would like to help if we can. Where possible, we are happy to give students some time by phone. Contact [email protected] to arrange a time for a phonecall and have your questions ready. We’ll do our best to answer them!