Grass-fed Goodness
In New Zealand, we farm the way nature intended, with our cows grazing on lush pastures. Grass is a natural food source for cows and New Zealand has the ideal natural environment for growing it.
Our New Zealand farmers partner with experts to grow healthy, nutrient-rich grass. Because healthy cows make milk that’s full of goodness. Better for them. Better for your recipes.
Natural food source
Grass, including grass silage, hay and forage crops, is a natural food source for cows and our New Zealand environment is ideal for growing grass.
Grass-fed cows
Our cows consume 96% of their diet as grass, and spend over 350 days of a year on pasture, which is more than anywhere else in the world. **
No GMO
All feed grown in New Zealand for our cows is not from genetically modified plants; New Zealand has strict laws against breeding and growing genetically modified plants.
Third-party certified
Our Fonterra Grass and Pasture-Fed Standard is certified and audited annually by AsureQuality, an independent Conformity Assessment Body (CAB) accredited by JAS-ANZ.
*The Fonterra New Zealand Grass and Pasture Fed Standard requires our cows to be at least 80% grass fed (on a dry weight basis) and spend 90%+ of non-milking time grazing outdoors at a minimum. New Zealand cows are 96% grass fed (on an ‘as consumed’ basis on a rolling three-year average – this is equivalent to 89% on a dry weight basis) and spend 97% of non-milking time outdoors.
**Of the top 15 dairy exporting countries (based on annual dairy product export volumes in 2023 and including New Zealand), only Ireland operates a similar pasture-based model to New Zealand. Based on Irish data presented in O’Brien et al. 2018, dairy cows in Ireland have access to pasture, on average, 255 days per year. In New Zealand, data from Fonterra Farm Dairy Records show that our Fonterra New Zealand cows spend, on average, 97% of their non-milking time outside on pasture which is more than 350 days of a year. This is calculated annually and reported as a rolling three-year average.
Fresh grass makes our butter golden
Our grass-fed New Zealand cows make delicious butter with a creamy golden colour thanks to the beta-carotene in our grass. Full of goodness for your recipes.
