Sterling Technology: Producing “Sterling” Quality Colostrum

Sterling Technology, Brookings, SD, is a supplier of colostrum to the dietary supplement and functional foods market. The company name “Sterling” was chosen to reflect its commitment to provide products of sterling quality. Randy Kjelden, president and CEO, explained the company’s beginnings. “In 1987 we purchased a company that was in the business of producing colostrum. We spent the first seven years concentrating on animal health products but when DSHEA was passed we thought it would be a good time to put more effort toward the human market,” he said. “Awareness of colostrum has improved over the past several years and becoming more involved in this market was brought on by our belief that the day would come when people are going to have to replace antibiotics with a natural product and colostrum seems to fit the bill.”

Among the products in the company’s portfolio is ColostrumGold™ Liquid, which is a golden liquid colostrum developed from over 15 years of re­search and is made using a proprietary process and filtering method with minimal heat—less than when the colos­trum is first produced by the cow—to ensure maximum bioactivity and bioavailability of all of its nutritional components. Ingesting colos­trum as a liquid concentrate enables the body to more easily assimilate colos­trum’s vital nutrients. Also in its arsenal is ColostruMune™ powder, which is a pure bovine colostrum that is standardized to provide 25% immuno­globulins (nutrients that have been clinically shown to support the immune system). ColostruMune is unaltered in content and subjected to as few changes as possible in order to preserve its natural wholesomeness. Sterling does not filter or de-fat this food because that reduces the colostrum of its most vital and clinically significant qualities. ColostruMune is an ideal ingredient for capsules, tablets and functional foods.

Colos­trumGold and ColostruMune are produced from healthy, nutritionally-supplemented cows raised in the U.S. on USDA and FDA certified dairy farms. These cattle are carefully fed a scientifically designed diet that contains a balance of legumes and grasses along with minerals and trace minerals to ensure a consistently high potency colostrum. Additionally, ColostrumGold and ColostruMune are high in immunoglobulin content and growth factors.

Sterling’s colostrum is manufactured according to GMPs sourced from USDA and FDA certified dairies; collected within 12 hours of production; free of synthetic hormones, pesticides and antibiotics; processed using minimal heat to ensure the bioavailability of its nutritional factors and unadulterated to maintain its natural wholeness and nutrition. Lastly, each lot of Sterling Technology ColostrumGold and Colos­truMune is analyzed to assure a standard level of immunoglobulins as well as the content of IGF-1 and lactoferrin. Expanding on analysis, Mr. Kjelden commented, “I am a big proponent of analysis. In the colostrum industry the emphasis has been on processing techniques, where the cows come from and at what point in time the colostrum is harvested,” he offered. “All of these issues have bearing on the finished product but we believe that you really need to pay attention to the final analysis of the product because in the end it’s the analysis that makes the colostrum you purchase a good product.”

In addition to its commitment to solid manufacturing practices, Sterling also prides itself on a strong commitment to science. The company is dedicated to educating consumers on the benefits of colostrum by investing in clinical research to support the sales of its products. On the research front, Sterling has maintained a relationship with South Dakota State University to perform studies that will give further substantiation to the benefits of Colos­trumGold and ColostruMune.

Mr. Kjelden discussed some recent events at the company. “The move to our new facility is pretty significant because our production capabilities have expanded drastically from what they were a year ago,” he commented. “We are also excited about our new, custom engineered, three stage steam-heated dryer. We think by going the extra mile with the engineering we put out a really high quality product.” For the future, Sterling is looking forward to expanding again this year to double the size of its new facility to meet de­mand, increase capacity and institute new state-of-the-art equipment.—R.M.

Sterling Technology
133 32nd Avenue South
Brookings, South Dakota 57006
Telephone: 605-692-5552
Fax: 605-692-9080
E-mail: info@bestcolostrum.com
Website: www.bestcolostrum.com