Milk (Dairy Farmers of Ontario)
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Year: 1972
Designer: Unknown
Studio: Marshall Fenn Communications
Status: Active (updated brand)
Industry: Agriculture
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www.milk.org
As I mentioned in a previous Canadian Chronicles story, I grew up on my parents’ hog and cash crop farm in Southern Ontario—and during the summers, I worked for the Cocchios, a local family dairy farm. Milk was a staple at our family table, served at every meal. Each Saturday, we’d head over to our neighbor’s dairy farm to pick up a couple of containers of fresh milk from their cooling tank. Looking back now, I’m not entirely sure that was legal—but it sure tasted better than anything from the store… so creamy : )
On my first visit with my dad to our neighbor’s dairy farm, I met the milkman and spotted the bold Milk logo proudly displayed on the side of his shiny tanker truck. I remember staring at it as a kid, thinking how cool, but better when we got to mix it with a scoop of Nestlé Quik, it was pure magic.
The logo wasn’t flashy or overdone—and that’s exactly what made it stick. The word Milk, drawn in a loose, handwritten style (or maybe traced in milk with a finger), rested between two cool shades of blue that instantly suggested something cold and refreshing. It was simple, almost modest, but that simplicity carried weight—feeling honest and familiar, like it was saying: this is the good stuff, straight from the farm.
What strikes me now is not just how it looked—it’s how it made me feel. The mark connected you to the people behind it: the farmers, the routines, the trust. It didn’t need to work hard to get your attention. It just belonged—and that’s what made it powerful.
Looking back, I realize how much that logo shaped the way I think about design. Good branding doesn’t need to be loud. It just needs to feel real—and speak with purpose.
When I was in high school, I got a job as a farmhand on a local dairy farm. The family who hired me were Italian Canadians, all living together in a big farmhouse—father, mother, son, aunt, and nonna (grandmother). My days were filled with learning every part of running a farm—milking cows, feeding and caring for cattle, heifers, calves, and chickens, planting and harvesting crops, mowing hay in a sweltering barn, and even getting hands-on with butchering: cutting and curing meat and making Capicola and Salsiccia.
They also introduced me to French press coffee and some seriously amazing Italian home cooking. Nonna was always telling me to eat more, shouting “Mangia! Mangia!” at every meal. They didn’t just hire me—they made me part of the family and I loved it!
I learned more than just how to milk a cow—they taught me about responsibility, hard work, and what it means to show up for others. Lessons I still carry with me today. ❤
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1. Milk tanker truck picking up milk from a local dairy farm
2. Young farmer with Milk and 4H club pin, Howard R Wheeler – 2023
3. Milk jug and Coffee vs. Milk, Magazine Ad by Vickers & Benson – 1976
4. Photo of my father, Dick Nÿkamp milking our only family farm Holstein – c. 1970
5. Milk. Really keeps kids going, poster Ad, Due North Communications – 2011
6. Milk Bone, Billboard Ad, BBDO Canada – c. 2000
7. Curious cattle, Photo by Jakob Cotton – c. 2019
8. 50th Anniversary Branding via Recharge with Milk Tankard, Ontario Curling Association – 2015
9. Dairy Done Right (The Letter), TV Ad by NFA – 2019
