A Historical Timeline of a Loveable Dairy
Shamrock Dairy founded in Tucson by Irish immigrants W.T. McClelland and his wife, Winifred. Just think – it all started with 20 cows, one Model T truck and a dream.
Shamrock adds first milk pasteurizer. Kids no longer can use the “But there’s bacteria in my milk!” excuse not to finish their milk with dinner.
Milking machines are used in Arizona for the first time. Studies show cows prefer them 3-to-1 over farmers with cold hands.
A new processing plant is built in Tucson. Shamrock now has 35 employees and 15 vehicles of all types. On a side note, our entire herd of cows is declared 4F and unable to join the WACs.
Norman McClelland, son of W.T. and Winifred, joins the business after World War II. Today, he remains active in the business as CEO.
Shamrock buys its first refrigerated truck. Not long after, “In The Cool, Cool, Cool of the Evening” tops the pop charts for several weeks. Coincidence? We think not.
Shamrock Dairy builds a new plant in Phoenix that includes milk production, as well as a culture room for making sour cream, cottage cheese and buttermilk. Shamrock’s food scientists are abuzz with the new catchphrase, “Hey, now there’s always room for culture!” Obviously, they’re better food scientists than comedians.
Through key acquisitions, Shamrock becomes the No. 1 dairy in Arizona. So what did we do for an encore the next year?
Shamrock leads the nation in milk production for herds of 125 or more Guernsey cows, producing 27,990 pounds of milk in a year. That’s a gallon for every hippie at Woodstock.
Watergate. Disco. Pet Rocks. But on the plus side, Shamrock quietly continued growing during the ’70s.
Shamrock’s first calves conceived by embryo transplant are born – replacing the old method where mommy cows got their baby cows from a cabbage patch.
Kent McClelland, Norman’s son, becomes president and chief operating officer, and Norman McClelland is named chairman and CEO of Shamrock Foods Company. Prompting a series of popular jokes beginning with, “Two Irish guys walk into a dairy …”
Shamrock is listed in Forbes magazine’s top 400 privately held companies. Subscriptions to Forbes magazine among Shamrock employees skyrocket.
Shamrock Farms is launched with the introduction of ice cream, frozen novelties and our very own spokescow, Roxie.
Shamrock celebrates its 75th birthday. (Trust us, we had no shortage of milk to go with our giant birthday cake!) Also, Shamrock Farms extends its product offerings to include a complete dairy line.
Now our milk can go where you go. Shamrock Farms debuts single-serve mmmmilk in pint and quart sizes, making milk a convenient on-the-go beverage.
Shamrock Farms expands into markets outside Arizona. Convenient, no-mess Squeeze Sour Cream is introduced. And we debut single-serve Cottage Cheese cups in a variety of flavors. (Boy, have we been busy this century or what?)
Shamrock Farms opens a new Extended Shelf Life (ESL) facility that allows us to produce milk beverages (32 oz. & smaller) that stay fresher longer. As a result, you’ll now find our delicious mmmmilks in vending machines, restaurants, theaters, baseball parks and more.
Arizona Diamondback Luis Gonzalez pitches! Not for the D-Backs, mind you, but for Shamrock Farms. Right after the D-Backs’ exciting World Series win, he says he wanted to promote our caramel-flavored Dulce de Leche mmmmilk because his young triplets love our flavored milks. But we swear we’ve seen him sporting a chocolate milk mustache at the plate on more than one occasion!
We move our entire 10,000-cow herd into a new state-of-the-art farm in Stanfield, Arizona. We suggested the town change their name to Shamrockfield in honor of this, but for some reason they refused.
Speaking of refusing, that’s exactly what our drivers did when somebody suggested they all dress up in poodle skirts to celebrate the launch of our new mmmmilk flavor, Chocolate Malt (the second flavor in Gonzo’s signature milk lineup).
Also in 2003, our No Sugar Added 1% Chocolate Mmmmilk – as well as Strawberry Banana and Apple Cinnamon No Sugar Added Cottage Cheese cups – hit store shelves. Sweetened with SPLENDA®, they’re packed with fresh dairy taste, not extra sugar and calories.
Here’s to a healthier cup of coffee. Shamrock Farms launches real-dairy flavored Half and Half – with no trans fat. But it’s loaded with farm-fresh flavor. Try silky French Vanilla or nutty Hazelnut; they’re both fat free. We’ll drink to that.
Arizona’s hometown dairy turned to our great state for inspiration for a new line of premium ice cream. Also making its debut: Shamrock Farms Reduced Fat Flavored Milk (formerly mmmmilkshakes). In Strawberry, Chocolate, Vanilla and Dulce de Leche flavors, they’re 100 percent delicious yet have 23 percent less sugar on average than regular flavored milks. Hard to tell who loves them more: moms or kids.
Big news: Shamrock Farms becomes the first and only local dairy to offer organic dairy products to Arizona consumers. Health nuts, rejoice.
Shamrock Farms also becomes the first to develop and introduce the 96 oz. ergonomically correct Smart Fit Bottle™ to the dairy case. It’s perfect for the fridge, easy to carry and pour. It looks so cool, some people put it on their mantels for display. Some weird people, that is.
Another big year. Shamrock Farms becomes the first branded milk to be featured in a national “Got Milk?” advertisement! The ad features Shamrock Farms products and SUBWAY®’s Jared. Not bad for a family-owned and -operated dairy.
This is also the year we introduced Rockin’ Refuel™, a chocolate milk specially formulated for muscle recovery after exercise. In hindsight, it makes sense that nature’s perfect drink would be the optimal sports recovery beverage.
We kept on rockin’ by constructing a new processing addition that includes a third ESL filler. We’re more productive and efficient than ever before, prompting at least one of our cows to say, “My job just got a whole lot easier.”
And we kept expanding distribution, moving into new markets in key areas throughout the country in retailers and restaurants nationwide. Just goes to show when you’ve got something good, you can’t keep it down on the farm!
