To create a certified organic product, each element in the process must meet Australian organic regulation standards. It takes three years for a farm to achieve organic certification, while the dairy industry is also highly regulated.
“That is also one of the pluses, because it is so well regulated we have very few issues around food safety and integrity,” Prior says.
five:am sources its milk from organic dairy farmers in Gippsland, Victoria, which is around a 35-minute drive from the factory.
“It gets received and then we’ve got the big processing vats and basically the milk gets separated and then you put culture in it and then six hours later you’ve got yoghurt,” Prior says.
The milk is processed the same day it is delivered, then left for a day to cool to four degrees, and then it is dispatched to retailers.
“It is out the door three days after we have received it. From cow to you in about three days.”
Prior is obsessed with perfecting taste.
“Initially, we got the guy who is probably 74 years old now, who did all the King Island yoghurt – they are a good benchmark, so we got him out of retirement. He worked for me for two years. And he says these are the best yoghurts he’s ever done.”
In a highly competitive market, constant evolution is needed to maintain consumer appeal.
“Now that it is up and running we are always designing new concepts and new flavours – our last one was orange, lemon and ginger which was really successful, that is something that we found in France.
“We go and see what is happening around the world and try and do better than that back home.”
His other core focus is quality.
“When you are making, two, three or four million tubs of yoghurt a year, it is easy to say, ‘Oh well, it’s okay, a few are not that important’,” he says.
“But I tell the team that for the consumer, it might be the only time that they buy that product – it has to be spot on every time.”
Prior has his eyes fixed firmly on international potential. India is the first market on the agenda, and he is in the middle of investigating a joint venture to produce yoghurt for India’s supermarkets.
“There is quite a culture of eating natural yoghurt already – but there is now a much greater push towards flavoured pre-packed yoghurt, that hasn’t traditionally been part of their diet.
“So it’s opening up a lot and I think that is a big potential and is under-catered for at the moment.”
Prior has already visited India five times this year, searching for the same standard of ingredients that are available in Australia.
The move will be in addition to five:am’s export operations, which sees the brand air-freighted to Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore and Hong Kong as a niche, upmarket product.
“In Singapore we probably sell a small tub for about five dollars, so it is very expensive, and it is okay for certain markets but it would be no good for India.”
Domestically, expansion into non-yoghurt categories is next, but Prior declined to reveal more ahead of an official launch.
The name five:am is no accident. Prior says it is both the time the cows are milked, and when the health-focused entrepreneur jumps out of bed.
“I start with a good, long mediation then I do yoga, then I go for a run, then I sit down to a big breakfast of fruit, yoghurt and granola. I’ve been like that for long, long time,” he says.
“I surf a lot, a couple of mornings a week, and love setting up my day on the right note, then when you get to the office you are ready to fire.”
Prior says watching consumers adopt the brand and engage with it on social media platform Facebook fuels his energy and passion.
“They get a kick out of it, it is fun, it is playful and it’s energetic, and that has encouraged us to keep expanding the brand into other categories.”
The brand converses with its 35,000 followers every day about the benefits of organics and new flavours or products. Offering taste samples at events out of a branded-up 1960s combie van has also been a good way to spread the name.
As for Prior’s personal choice of yoghurt? It’s a smoothie and a ‘powerpak’.
“It’s got acai berry which is the antioxidant, and linseed, with low-fat yoghurt and a bit of extra protein – that is an ‘on-the-go’-style product. I normally have one of those on the way to surf.”
Melinda is a business writer and editor and helps companies to bring their brand stories to life through her small business, Oliver Content. Melinda was previously the content manager for KPMG Australia, an editor of SmartCompany, and spent many years as a journalist.
