by Amanda Smith, Associate Editor
Irish dairy production has been at a standstill since the imposition of quotas in 1984. As April 2015 looms on the horizon, producers are quickly preparing for this production veil to lift. With projected milk production gains on the order of 50 percent by 2020, their primary export cooperative, The Irish Dairy Board, has made processing investments at home and developed its presence abroad.
In late June, the Irish Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Simon Coveney, opened a new $12 million facility at Thiel Cheese and Ingredients, in Hilbert, Wis. Despite being Irish-owned, the facility will continue to buy milk from Wisconsin dairymen.
The Irish Dairy Board acquired the Thiel business in 2011. Since then, the business has seen strong growth with sales rising to $80 million in 2013, a gain of 13 percent. The company supplies cheese and cheese-based ingredients to some of America's largest food companies.
The facility was part of an $80 million expansion investment made by the Irish Dairy Board in its U.S. Food and Ingredients business. "The facility will further strengthen the positioning of Irish and Irish agribusiness expertise in the United States as well as support the economic prospects of Irish dairy farmers," noted Minister Coveney in a press release.
The plant includes a Customer Innovation Center, which was created to develop new products and functional dairy solutions for Thiel's U.S. customers.
It is unlikely that Irish or European dairy products will flood the U.S. market once quotas are lifted, as a series of extensive trade negations are still ongoing. Coupled with this, Ireland intends to focus on markets with better sales opportunities such as those in Asia and the Middle East.
