Schulz Milk on Tap at The Leaf Store, Hawthorn

Back in August we partnered with legendary Tassie company, The Udder Way, to deliver our Organic Full Cream and Low Fat Milk direct to customers, taking another step towards our mission to eliminate single-use plastic milk bottles from our business, and your lives!

Our founder, Simon, said when he initially began discussions with The Udder Way in early 2022, he knew their concept aligned perfectly with our sustainability principles and the overall Schulz ethos, yet he never imagined how well received it would be.

“In the past five months, we have been overwhelmed with the amount of support and interest from consumers, cafe owners, and retailers keen to install The Udder Way Keg System and supply Schulz Milk across Victoria. So much so that we are at capacity for the next three months!”.

So you could say we are onto a good thing.

The Udder Way keg system was created by Tassie café owner Ed Crick, who developed the system out of frustration that over 500 million single-use plastic bottles are used every year, with less than half being recycled.

Each unit holds 18L of milk, allowing refrigerated storage and dispensing of milk from an installed tap ensuring fresh and free-flowing milk, without the waste and clutter involved with conventional single-use plastic bottles and crates.

Schulz Milk in The Udder Way Keg System at Small Batch, North Melbourne

Since launching the partnership in August 2022 The Udder Way in collaboration with Schulz have:

Removed one million bottles from landfill across Australia and New Zealand.
30 new businesses on board, joining us in the fight to remove single-use plastics from waste – with plenty more on the way in the new year!
Removed approximately 13,000 milk bottles from waste in Victoria (that’s nearly 600kg!).
Seen customers at retailers such as The Leaf Store, Wildings, and Goods Grocer change their behaviour and turn to filling and refilling glass bottles as the norm.
Cafes such as CIBI, Sibling, and Bench Coffee set examples of how to remove plastic milk bottles from their venues and ultimately, rubbish bins, forever.

Reflecting on the partnership to date, Ed has said that The Udder Way’s growth in Victoria has been exceptional and their most successful launch.

“Our partnership with Schulz and subsequent rollout has exceeded all expectations. The uptake and receptiveness by cafes, retailers, and consumers has been phenomenal, and speaks to how environmentally conscious Victorian consumers are, and of course, how much they love Schulz Organic Milk!” says Ed.

We first launched Milk on Tap in 10 locations across Melbourne, in four months this has grown to include eight prominent retailers and 17 cafes.

Collingwood cafe, retail, and design concept store, CIBI, was one of our founding cafes to onboard our milk via The Udder Way keg system.

General Manager at CIBI, Pippa James said they didn’t need to think twice when they were approached by The Udder Way to install Schulz Milk on tap.

“This is such a great initiative and has been so impactful on us and how we do business in terms of handling waste at CIBI. Our customers have the pleasure of drinking Schulz milk in all our milk-based beverages including CIBI blend coffees, tea and hot chocolates, and our staff enjoys the ease of milk on tap, as well as the huge reduction in, and management of, plastic waste on a daily basis,” says Pippa.

*Head barista, Alec Guerzoni at CIBI, Collingwood uses Schulz Milk on tap via The Udder Way*

What’s next?

Our sustainability journey is ever-evolving and we are always looking for new ways to improve how we do business in this space, along with seeking out new partners to collaborate with. There are many ways you can get involved in sustainability initiatives on a local level too - speak to your local council, check out your local community reuse initiatives at Recycling Near You, or learn some tips from Sustainability Victoria on recycling and reducing household waste and improving energy efficiency in the home as we move towards a circular economy.

Our Milk on Tap program is currently at capacity for 2022. If you would like to express interest in installing The Udder Way Milk on Tap System in your business in the future please get in touch here.

For more information on the Schulz x The Udder Way partnership, including comprehensive FAQ’s and a list of participating retailers and cafes, please visit the Milk on Tap page on our website.