Glanbia plc, Dairy Farmers of America Inc. (DFA) and Select Milk Producers Inc. (Select), announce that they have finalized a Joint Venture partnership to build, supply and operate the planned new large-scale cheese and whey production facility in Michigan, which is now expected to be commissioned in the second half of 2020.
Glanbia, DFA and Select are the existing Joint Venture partners behind the highly successful Southwest Cheese (SWC) facility in Clovis, New Mexico. Glanbia will hold 50% of the equity of the new Michigan Joint Venture with DFA and Select holding the balance of equity. Glanbia will be the operational, technical and commercial partner in the Michigan Joint Venture, which mirrors the arrangement the partners have in the SWC Joint Venture. In addition, the partners are pleased to announce Michigan Milk Producers Association (MMPA) will continue to participate in the project as a strategic milk supplier to the new facility.
On completion in 2020, the new facility will process 8 million pounds (3.6 million litres) of milk per day into a range of cheese (300m lbs per annum / 135,000 metric tonnes per annum) and whey products for U.S. and international markets. Pre-engineering and site selection for the project are well advanced and the new facility will be a strategic outlet for the large scale, growing milk pool in the state of Michigan.
Commenting on the update, Brian Phelan, Chief Executive Officer of Glanbia Nutritionals said, “We are delighted that we have concluded an agreement on the Michigan Joint Venture with our existing partners in Southwest Cheese, to build, supply and operate this new facility. The partners have a strong working relationship that has evolved over many years and a strong track record working together to successfully run large-scale cheese and whey facilities. We are also delighted that MMPA will continue to be closely associated with the project as a valued strategic milk supplier. We look forward to progressing at speed now to build and commission the new facility.”
“We are excited to extend our partnership with Glanbia and Select Milk Producers to build this new facility in Michigan,” said Greg Wickham, Chief Financial Officer of Dairy Farmers of America. “Michigan is ideally situated for continued milk production growth and has ideal proximity to serve not only major U.S. markets, but also the global marketplace. Once complete, this facility will serve as a home for our members’ milk in Michigan and complement our existing facility in Cass City, Michigan.”
