Miyoko's Creamery
California-based maker of cultured, artisanal plant-based cheeses and butter — one of the most influential vegan dairy brands of the 2010s and 2020s.
Miyoko’s Creamery is an American food company founded in 2014 in Northern California by chef, author, and activist Miyoko Schinner. The company makes cultured plant-based cheeses and butter using traditional fermentation techniques applied to cashew and legume bases.
Why it matters
Miyoko’s was among the first companies to treat plant-based cheese as a culinary product rather than a novelty — applying aging, culturing, and artisanal craft to reach flavor profiles comparable to traditional dairy cheeses. The company helped normalize the idea that dairy alternatives could be premium, not compromise.
Legal significance
In 2020, Miyoko’s successfully challenged a California state agency that had tried to bar the company from using words like “butter” and “dairy-free” on its labels. The ruling was an important free-speech precedent for the plant-based industry.