A family-run dairy in the UK says it has seen the future of yoghurt – and it’s in the past.

Before supermarkets changed everything, people got their milk and dairy products in reusable containers. And now, Otties dairy is delivering its swiss-style yoghurt via a dispenser that consumers can visit to fill their own containers –offering shoppers sustainability as well as provenance.

Otties - which is the last family-run dairy farm in the Elham Valley in the southern English county of Kent, also known as ‘the garden of England” - says the yoghurt dispenser “offers a real drive towards sustainability”, encouraging shoppers to refill their own vessels and delivering around a 70% reduction in plastic compared to individual yoghurt pots.

“Due to the pressure on dairy farms over the last few years, we decided to diversify into yoghurt and we have created a really fantastic high-quality Swiss-style yoghurt, which we’re really proud of,” said David Guy, owner of Otties. “This is the future of yoghurt as it offers a far more efficient production process and vastly reduces the plastic required.”

Shoppers can get their Otties yoghurt at nearby Macknade foodhall, the first outlet in the country to have an Otties yoghurt dispenser. And there are already plans to roll out a second machine to a new Macknade’s site, also in Kent.

“Like us, Otties is pushing the boundaries to reduce its environmental impact on the world,” said Stefano Cuomo, managing director of Macknade, a 170-year-old Kentish-Italian business that has been in the same family for six generations.

“It’s really important for us to support the growth and reach of local businesses and this is just one example of the relationships we cultivate. Not only are we confident that we are offering a premium yoghurt product to our customers, it is also helping us to meet our own goals of reducing the packaging and waste produced by the business. Not to mention that it tastes incredible.”