Shatto Milk Company in Missouri: History, What It Raises, How It Makes Money and How to Contact It
Profile updated November 2026
Shatto Milk Company is a family-owned dairy in Osborn, Missouri, just north of Kansas City, on a farm that has been in the same family for more than a century. It earns its place among Missouri's elite operations by turning a commodity dairy into a regional brand: the family built its own bottling plant in 2003, keeps about 300 cows, and sells flavored milks, cheese and farm experiences direct to consumers.
| Location | Osborn, Missouri (north of Kansas City) |
|---|---|
| Founded | Farm in the family for over 100 years; own-label bottling began in 2003 |
| Sectors | Dairy; bottled milk; farmstead cheese; agritourism |
| Scale | About 300 cows, as reported by Dairy Herd Management |
| Why it is elite | Century-plus family dairy that became a well-known regional processor-with-farm brand |
| Ownership | Family-owned and operated; Barbara Shatto is the owner |
| Official website | Shatto Milk Company official site |
History of Shatto Milk Company
The Shatto dairy sits in Clinton County country north of Kansas City, and trade coverage describes it as a centennial farm with more than 110 years of history. A business school case study describes Robert and Barbara Shatto as the third generation of dairy farmers in their family, milking mostly Holsteins. The family sold milk to a cooperative when prices fell in the 1980s.
The turning point came in 2003, when the family built a bottling plant on the farm so it could keep its cows and sell milk under its own label. Bottling began in June 2003. In 2011 the company entered the cheese business, opening a farmstead cheesemaking facility that also housed a retail store, added cold storage and offices, and launching with cheddar curds in three flavors. Since then the brand has grown through flavored milks, seasonal releases tied to Kansas City sports, and a public cheese cave.
What Shatto Milk Company Grows and Raises
The base of the business is a Holstein dairy herd of about 300 cows, milked on the same farm where the milk is bottled. That farm-to-bottle chain is the operation's main advantage: the family controls quality, packaging and the story told to customers, rather than handing milk to a processor and accepting a pooled price.
The product line goes well beyond plain milk. Known flavors include root beer, cookies and cream, cotton candy and coffee, and the company releases special editions around Kansas City Chiefs playoff runs and Royals World Series appearances. On the cheese side, the cave showcases cheese made from the farm's own herd, holding about 10,000 pounds a year; depending on the season it offers five aged cheeses, four cheese curds and two spreads.
How Shatto Milk Company Makes Money
Bottled milk and flavored dairy
The core revenue stream is milk bottled under the Shatto label and sold in flavors and seasonal editions. Because the company bottles its own milk, it captures the processing and brand margin that a farm shipping to a cooperative gives up.
Farmstead cheese
Since 2011 the farm has made cheese from its own herd's milk, selling cheddar curds, aged cheeses and spreads through its store and cheese cave. Cheese adds a longer-shelf-life, higher-value product.
Farm store, tours and events
The on-site store sells dairy products plus an ice cream bar, and the farm offers tours, milking viewing and sampling. Hayrides and bonfires are available on Friday and Saturday evenings by reservation.
Farm Insight: What Other Operators Can Learn from Shatto Milk Company
First lesson: control the next step in the chain. The family kept its cows but built the bottling plant, which let it set the brand, the packaging and the price story rather than accept a cooperative price. Treat processing as a separate business with its own capital and food-safety demands.
Second lesson: use the product to tell a local story. Seasonal flavors tied to regional teams, a visible farm and a cheese cave all give customers reasons to buy and to visit. Third, diversify around a single asset: one herd supports milk, cheese, retail and agritourism, so the farm is less exposed to the swings of commodity dairy pricing.
Few farms can say their milk has its own fan base, but a Kansas City-area dairy that releases a Chiefs-themed flavor is clearly playing the long game with cotton candy and cookies and cream. For readers who enjoy farm satire, farm humor, ranch humor and farm jokes, farm.FM is the place to go, and a herd of 300 Holsteins that has its own bottle lineup is exactly the kind of cow-to-cup ambition it would applaud.
farm.FM calls itself the nation's first satirical farm site, and between the headlines it spins Tractor Tunes, country music for farmers; a good place to start reading is this farm.FM columnist's archive.
How to Contact Shatto Milk Company
Website: https://shattomilk.com/
Only the website was verified for this profile; the company's phone, address and visiting hours are on its official site. Confirm tour, store and event availability before traveling.
Shatto Milk Company Sources and Agriculture Authority Links
- Shatto Milk Company official site - Products, store and visitor information from the dairy itself
- Dairy Herd Management on Shatto Milk Company - Trade coverage of the family and herd
- KSHB 41 report on the Shatto cheese cave - Local TV coverage of tours, the store and the cheese cave
- USDA NASS 2022 Census of Agriculture, Missouri profile - State farm counts, sales and the share of direct-to-consumer farms
- MU Extension Missouri Century Farms program history - How Missouri recognizes farms owned by one family for 100 years or more
Shatto Milk Company FAQ
Where is Shatto Milk Company?
It is a family dairy in Osborn, Missouri, just north of the Kansas City area.
How big is the Shatto dairy herd?
Dairy Herd Management reports about 300 cows.
When did Shatto start bottling its own milk?
The family built its bottling plant and began bottling under its own label in June 2003, and added cheese in 2011.
Can the public visit Shatto Milk Company?
The dairy offers tours, milking viewing, a store with an ice cream bar and a cheese cave, with evening hayrides and bonfires by reservation. Check the official site for current details.
Shatto Milk Company shows how a Missouri family dairy can move from commodity milk to a regional brand by owning the bottling plant, the cheese and the visitor experience. For the wider picture of crops, cattle, poultry and hogs, see the Missouri farms guide on this site.