From Cow to Wow: Edlong is revolutionizing dairy-free and dairy flavor solutions
December 2025
While most of their competitors focus on a variety of flavors, for the past 110 years, Edlong’s singular focus has been on dairy flavoring – enhancing your favorite snacks with custom-crafted flavor solutions. A staple in Elk Grove Village since 1968 and one of the longest-tenured occupants, Edlong takes the essence of milk and uses the process of fermentation to yield different flavors to deliver on buttery notes, cream notes and culture notes to create the perfect dairy-based taste profile.
Their solutions are used across a variety of industries from snacks to cheeses to creams. Want just the right buttery flavor on your popcorn? Need a dulce de leche coffee creamer that stands out from the pack? Edlong can deliver a solution for you. And it’s not just dairy-based, they work with companies that want to deliver dairy flavors without the allergens for a dairy-free experience.
The process of developing a flavor
When Edlong works with customers, it’s not as simple as “make me a yogurt” with a cookie-cutter formula. There are many factors that go into developing just the right flavor for each customer. Each flavor is 100% customized through a detailed process.
“When we design for our partners, we really have to get to know what they are after,” shares Edlong President Michael Natale.
Edlong works with clients to customize their flavor based on mouthfeel, price point, application, region product of distribution and a number of other factors. The Flavor Explorer can give you a glimpse into just how nuanced the flavor creation process is. Edlong begins the process by developing the flavor with a flavorist, applying it to the base product, fine-tuning it, and having the sensory team evaluate it to ensure it meets the customer's needs.
Ideally, their customers come to The Barn, Edlong’s proprietary innovation lab, and when they do, the whole process can be completed in 3-5 days. When it’s done off-site, it can take between four and ten weeks to develop the right flavor and deliver to the client.
“The most fun part of the process is when we get the flavor right and the client is excited!”
- Edlong President Michael Natale
The future of flavor
While every flavor is truly customized at Edlong, there are some trends that are shaping what is on the horizon in the flavor market. At the federal level, with the new regulations, there is a new focus on ingredients and what is in food. Fermented foods are being seen as a healthy ingredient alternative.
MSG was a taboo ingredient, but now with international influence, MSG is making a resurgence. Beef tallow with its health benefits is seeing new life. Umami, ramen, and boba tea are trends heavily influenced by pop culture. The sweet and salty combination is also getting its day in the sun.