In the pantheon of legendary tales surrounding The Grateful Dead, there’s one that stands out as truly wholesome—one that involves saving a struggling dairy business and catapulting yogurt into the culinary mainstream. This story of cultural convergence, in true Grateful Dead fashion, combines the counterculture movement, acid tests, and the birth of yogurt culture in America.
In the early 1970s, the natural foods movement was gaining momentum, and tucked away in Oregon’s scenic Willamette Valley, Chuck and Sue Kesey were grappling with the financial struggles of their dairy business, Springfield Creamery. At the time, yogurt was still weird—consumed exclusively by hippies and Europeans. They had just launched a specialty product with added acidophilus, a then-relatively unknown ingredient, making their yogurt the first in the nation to contain live probiotics. They named the brand Nancy’s Yogurt, after their bookkeeper who shared her grandmother’s family yogurt recipe with them.
By 1972, the Kesey’s business was on the verge of financial collapse. Chuck’s brother, the renowned author Ken Kesey and leader of the Merry Pranksters, reached out to his dear friends in The Grateful Dead for assistance. Known for their collaborations on the infamous “acid tests,” where attendees consumed LSD-laced Kool-Aid, The Grateful Dead agreed to perform a benefit show for Springfield Creamery—the focus now on both acid and acidophilus.
The event took place in Veneta, Oregon, on August 27, 1972, and attracted 20,000 fans who purchased $3 tickets printed on Nancy’s Yogurt labels. The concert, set amidst scorching temperatures, became legendary, immortalized in the movie “Sunshine Daydream.” It was noted that the 107-degree performance became the “nakedest scene” the band ever attended, and yes, it ended up generating enough funds to save the creamery from ruin.
As the Grateful Dead’s influence soared, so did the popularity of Nancy’s Yogurt. The union of rock ‘n’ roll phenomenon and a health-conscious dairy product created a cultural moment that transcended stereotypes. No longer confined to the hippie counterculture, yogurt began its journey into the mainstream. Since then, the yogurt industry has experienced remarkable growth, with the US yogurt production market reaching $7.2 billion in 2020. Americans, on average, consume approximately 13.4 pounds of yogurt per person annually—a remarkable transformation from a time when yogurt was largely unfamiliar to the masses.
While Nancy’s Yogurt continues to thrive, its story represents more than just a successful business venture. It serves as a testament to the transformative power of brand ambassadorship and the influence of the right, well, influencers. The Grateful Dead’s support breathed life into a struggling creamery, forever altering the perception of yogurt in American culture. So, the next time you enjoy a creamy spoonful of yogurt, take a moment to thank The Grateful Dead—hell, maybe even listen to the show on Spotify.
