LULLAA® NZ SmartMilk™ began with something deeply personal: a homemade family drink that co-founder Vibhah Shiriwastow had grown up with and continued to make throughout different stages of family life.
For Vibhah and Vineet, that family tradition prompted a bigger question: could they take something that had been part of their lives for generations and create a modern functional dairy product that others could enjoy?
That idea became LULLAA® NZ SmartMilk™.
The founders set out to combine premium New Zealand dairy with functional ingredients including marine collagen peptides, prebiotic fibre, MGO 120+ Mānuka honey, botanicals, zinc and vitamin D3. Just as importantly, they wanted to achieve the product without relying on gums, stabilisers, refined sugar or artificial flavours.
Their ambition was bigger than creating another flavoured milk or wellness beverage. Four Leaves Co. saw an opportunity to explore a new space for New Zealand dairy, bringing a range of functional ingredients together in a familiar everyday format.
But turning the idea into a commercially viable product presented a significant technical challenge.
Milk is a complex processing environment, and incorporating multiple functional ingredients while maintaining the smooth texture the founders wanted was difficult. The formulation also needed to withstand UHT processing if it was going to move beyond small-scale development and towards commercial production.
That is where NZFIN and FoodBowl became an important part of the journey. Four Leaves Co. came to FoodBowl with a clear product vision, but needed the infrastructure, technical capability and manufacturing environment to prove that the formulation could work at a larger scale.
Rather than committing immediately to a large production run, the team began with a controlled trial. This allowed the formulation and UHT process to be tested at a scale that limited the risk associated with an unproven process. The trial became an important technical milestone.
Despite the complexity of the formulation, the team was able to achieve the smooth texture the founders had been working towards and demonstrate that NZ SmartMilk™ could successfully move through the UHT process.
For LULLAA®, FoodBowl provided more than access to equipment. As manufacturing challenges emerged, the production team worked alongside the founders to test, adapt and find practical solutions. That ability to work through problems at pilot scale helped bridge the gap between a family-inspired concept and a product with a credible commercial manufacturing pathway.
The technical progress at FoodBowl has since been followed by growing market momentum. LULLAA® NZ SmartMilk™ has launched in New Zealand through FreshChoice, while Four Leaves Co. continues to develop its retail, direct-to-consumer and export channels.
LULLAA® NZ SmartMilk™ is already earning recognition on both the New Zealand and international stage. In 2026, Four Leaves Co. took home Best Dairy Drink at the World Dairy Innovation Awards, alongside finalist placings for Best Functional Dairy Product and Best Manufacturing Innovation. The momentum continued with LULLAA® being named a 2026 New Zealand Food Awards finalist in the Beverage category — a strong endorsement of what the founders have created and the potential they see for the product.
For a Hamilton family business, the journey represents a significant transition: from a drink made at home and passed through generations to a New Zealand functional dairy product gaining recognition on the international stage.
The next challenge is scale. Four Leaves Co. is now focused on increasing manufacturing capacity, improving production economics and building the platform required to grow LULLAA® in New Zealand and international markets.
The longer-term ambition extends beyond one product. The founders want NZ SmartMilk™ to demonstrate what is possible when New Zealand dairy, functional nutrition and food innovation are brought together in new ways.
