Our Story

Established 1925. Founded 2017.

In 2016, Henry Schwartz closed New York City's last dairy, Elmhurst. This wasn't easy; Elmhurst had been in his family over 90 years, since his father and uncle hand-bottled and delivered milk to Queens and Brooklyn in a truck full of ice blocks. The cows had long since gone, but a famous tradition had ended...

...Until 2017 when Elmhurst reappeared as, of all things, an innovative plant milk company. How could a committed dairyman like Henry make this shocking change?

Henry was concerned, but also intrigued by a steady decline in dairy consumption and the changing American diet. More and more people were eating healthier, adopting plant-based alternatives, and becoming mindful of environmental impact. Actually, so was he.

Making plant milk might have seemed like a radical turn after a life in dairy – yet to me it was perfectly logical, probably even necessary.
Henry Schwartz

Henry could see the future of "milk" – and the possibility of evolving into a non-dairy company. But what did he know about plant milks? Then fate intervened. Around this time, Henry had a chance meeting with a famous plant food scientist, Dr. Cheryl Mitchell, who just so happened to be looking for a partner to help bring her revolutionary HydroRelease™ milling process to market. Using just water, HydroRelease separates the natural components of a grain, nut, or seed before reassembling them as a smooth, creamy beverage. The original ingredient's nutrition is maintained, and no gums or emulsifiers are needed to hold the product together.

And that was it!

Henry went all in on the plant-based revolution, partnering with Dr. Cheryl to bring her technology to market. This meant shutting down a historic dairy. But it was not the end of Elmhurst – just an exciting new chapter in a long family story. Henry preserved the iconic name along with the year it first appeared on the streets of New York. Today, Elmhurst 1925 is the fastest-growing plant-based beverage company on the market!