Our Brands
Greenbrier Dairy's range of foods reflects how dedicated we are to our West Virginia roots and the way things were and should be. All designed to make you say "YUM!".
The founder of Greenbrier Dairy LLC, Trey Yates, received a dairy heifer from his dad for his first 4-H project. A tiny Jersey he promptly named Maybelle. Trey fell in love with the idea of becoming a dairy farmer and soon began buying more cows to accompany Maybelle.
After graduating High School and attending college, Trey was ready to begin milking, unfortunately the numbers didn’t add up and Trey realized that he could not be profitable producing a commodity milk product in West Virginia.
Trey’s only option was to become a farm to table producer of value-added milk products that would take him out of commodity based agricultural system. At the same time, Trey is doing the right thing by pushing farm to table, local, sustainable farming practices and production of an all-natural product.
After talks with his father, Trey learned that his great grandfather and grandfather (who owned Lakeside Farm in Lewisburg) had sold milk in the 1940’s and 50’s to a company called Greenbrier Dairy located in Lewisburg WV.
Hugh Hutchinson moved to Lewisburg 1937 after having worked for Imperial Ice Cream Company in Huntington, WV. He, along with a business partner, E.M. Johnson purchased Lewisburg Ice Cream Company, located in downtown Lewisburg. In 1942, they changed the name of the business to Greenbrier Dairy Products Company. It was a co-op dairy, with Greenbrier Dairy Products Company buying milk from area farmers throughout West Virginia and even Ohio. The business grew and they found it necessary to move to a larger, more modern, centrally located plant. That plant was located in Beckley. With modernization, Greenbrier Dairy was the second facility in the nation to convert from bottles to paper cartons.Hugh owned and ran that plant until he decided to retire in the 1960’s. He sold Greenbrier Dairy Products Company to Beatrice Foods. As part of the sale, he agreed to stay on for a few years to help run the dairy making for an easier transition of the business.
Trey claimed the name in 2014 and Greenbrier Dairy LLC based in Rainelle WV was born. Rainelle was chosen as a ground zero due to its need for economic development and the availability of a workforce.
Beginning in 2014, Trey continued purchasing cows to add to a herd that is housed at a contract milking facility in Frankford WV. He also began gathering funds to build a creamery. After securing a loan from his parents, he purchased a building in Rainelle and began renovations. A 1000-year flood and the issue of being a young person in business made it a struggle.
In 2020 Trey took on partners, Jacob and Alex Massey and Coalfield Development to help complete the project.
Production of butter and cheese began in the spring of 2021.
By May of 2022, the Massey brothers stepped away from Greenbrier Dairy and Trey took over 100% of day to day operations and beyond. From 2021 to 2022 Greenbrier Dairy experienced a growth of 47% with its 2 products relying heavily on the boards of education across West Virginia. August 2022 Greenbrier Dairy was awarded a grant from WV DHHR for an equipment expansion and a boost to help expand our social mission.
Summer of 2022 proved to be a difficult time for Greenbrier Dairy as school systems were on break and revenues virtually paused. A plan began in January of 2023 to make sure Greenbrier Dairy didn't experience a revenue drought in the Summer 2023, hence the birth of Cow Licks.
Cow Licks held its first event on April 29, 2023 and ended its first ice cream season October 14, 2023. Cow Licks was a massive learning curve for the Greenbrier Dairy team but it proved to be an overwhelming success. 33 events were attended and history was made with the first Cow Lick's trailer as it was the first ever legal food truck to be permitted to sell product within the city limits of Lewisburg, West Virginia.
Mid 2023 grant funds started to be dispersed, and new equipment began to make its way to Rainelle. Updates to the facility were in order to move our facility from manufactures grade to Grade A for yogurt. On November 30, 2023 the first test batch of yogurt was successfully produced. Greenbrier Dairy management strategy in 2023 moved from out sourcing and moved more towards a family first system with hired production help. With this new strategy Greenbrier Dairy experienced a 29% overall growth in business from 2022.
As we grow as a company our core values will remain the same, make the small family dairy farm sustainable and viable and create employment in the mountain state.
Up the Creek not available in your area? Rally for us!
Can't find a store near you that offers Up the Creek Mustard? We feel no one should go without our Mustards! WE have a way to have your voice heard and get Up the Creek close to you! Simply print out this letter and hand it to the manager at your favorite store.
Almost Heaven Specialties, your number one source for gifts, employee appreciation, and care packages. We're dedicated to giving you the very best of West Virginia made products, with a focus on customer service, product choice, and safe, dependable shipping.
Founded in 2016 by Trey Yates, Almost Heaven Specialties has come a long way from its beginnings in a home office. When Trey first started out, his passion to bring industry back to the small towns of rural West Virginia inspired him to leave West Virginia University and look for opportunities in Southern West Virginia as an entrepreneur. We now serve customers all over the Eastern United States, and are thrilled to be a part of the economic rebirth of Appalachia, by offering the best of the BEST of West Virginia to the world!
Mix In Magic was formed by John and Kari Yatsko in 2016. After having worked for years for a company selling dips, soups, and wine mixes and learning that the owner was moving into another business endeavor, they decided to purchase the existing recipes and expanded with new ones. Based out of Pennsylvania for a year and a half, Mix-in Magic was growing and thriving. Their family, too, was growing and led to their decision to move to Alabama, to be closer to Kari’s mother. Growing a family and growing a company proved too difficult a task and ultimately led to the decision to close the company, as family must always come first. John and Kari were very excited when they were contacted by Trey Yates, 2020 West Virginia Small Business Administration Young Entrepreneur of the Year and owner of Greenbrier Dairy LLC, to sell Mix-in Magic so that their loyal customers, and future customers, can continue to enjoy the wide array of flavors. In 2020, Trey moved Mix in Magic to its new home of Rainelle, West Virginia to grow Mix in Magic as a business and to bring business to West Virginia.
We hope you enjoy our products as much as we enjoy offering them to you. If you have any questions or comments, please don't hesitate to contact us.