Dairy Farmers of America breaks ground on Michigan facility

Dairy Farmers of America (DFA), a US-based dairy cooperative, has broken ground on a $40m ingredient processing plant in Cass City, Michigan, creating 25 full-time jobs.

The 33,000ft² facility, which is scheduled to go onstream in 2014, will serve the region, where milk production is steadily outpacing local plant capacity.

DFA member farms in the Michigan Thumb area will supply milk to the facility that will process up to 3,000,000lbs of milk each day and produce condensed whole and skim milk, as well as cream.

Operating systems at the facility will allow the company to provide protein functionality and yields with fewer operating costs and reduced physical footprint, compared with other alternative systems.

It is designed to recover and re-use water in plant cleanup operations.

The project is supported through a $500,000 grant from the Michigan Strategic Fund (MSF) under the Michigan Business Development Program and a $1m Community Development Block Grant.

It also received a $300,000 grant in corporate funds from the Michigan Economic Development Corporation. MSF awarded Tuscola County and Cass City a new 15-year Agriculture Processing Renaissance Zone designation for the project.

Cass City provided approximately $6.7m of revenue bonding for a wastewater pretreatment system and public infrastructure improvements.

DFA executive vice president Mark Korsmeyer said: "This plant will provide a local home for our members’ milk, answering the growing need for Michigan plant capacity while building a base for value-added processing in the future."

"Furthermore, the project is consistent with DFA’s strategic plan, creating supply chain efficiencies and increasing commercial investments to bring increased value to our farmer owners," Korsmeyer added.

Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development director Jamie Clover Adams said: "The plant will not only increase our dairy processing capabilities in the state, but it will also create jobs and support the Thumb region."

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Image: The facility will process up to 3,000,000lbs of milk each day and produce condensed whole and skim milk, as well as cream. Photo courtesy of Alessandro Paiva.