To borrow from Shakespeare, a glass of milk by any other (brand) name tastes just as sweet. While Central New Yorkers are very familiar with the Byrne Dairy brand, many of the products Byrne makes are actually private label dairy products — that is, store brand!
According to the Private Label Manufacturers Association, 1 out of 4 products purchased in a grocery store in 2024 had either the store’s name or its private label brand. In 2025, store brand sales increased 3.6% compared to 1.1% for national brands (as of November 2025).
Private label dairy is Byrne’s ‘bread & butter’!
January is Store Brands Month, and Byrne invites consumers to celebrate by purchasing private label dairy products. Byrne supplies much of the Eastern Seaboard with extended shelf-life and shelf-stable milk, cream, and half & half.
At a glance, you might not be able to tell these items were made by Byrne, but here’s how to crack the code when you’re in the dairy aisle at your local grocery store.
Take a look at the top of your milk carton and you’ll see a series of numbers separated by a dash. If you need help identifying the code, check out WhereIsMyMilkFrom.com.
Each dairy plant has its own code with a two-digit prefix that corresponds to the state in which the plant is located. New York State’s prefix is 36. The plant code for Byrne DeWitt is 36-8580, and the plant code for Byrne Cortlandville is 36-1287.
Check out the photos below for some examples:
This 2% Ultra-Filtered Milk was made at Byrne Cortlandville (plant number 36-1287).
This pint of heavy whipping cream was made at Byrne DeWitt (plant number 36-8580).
