State grants awarded to 6 dairy companies in Northeast Wisconsin

(WLUK) — Several Northeast Wisconsin dairy companies have received new state funding, Gov. Tony Evers announced Thursday.

Dairy Processor Grants were awarded to 13 companies by the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP). These grants are designed to help local dairy processors with projects that modernize and grow their businesses, produce new products or expand their markets, while also improving profitability. The goal is to sustain the long-term viability of Wisconsin’s dairy processing industry.

“We must be doing everything we can to ensure Wisconsin remains on top as America’s Dairyland,” said Evers, in part, in a news release.

I’m proud to have secured additional investments for this critical program in the most recent state budget I signed, and I’m glad to see these funds going out the door to ensure our dedicated dairy producers have the support and resources they need to compete and be successful.

A total of $600,000 was available for this year’s grants, with a maximum of $50,000 allowed for each company. Grant recipients are required to provide a match of at least 20% of the grant amount.

The selected winners in Northeast Wisconsin are:

• Briess in Chilton to invest in an upgrade of control systems
• Milk Specialties Company (Actus Nutrition) in Fond du Lac to investigate the potential of Milk Basic Proteins (MBP) as a value-added dairy ingredient
• Pine River Dairy in Manitowoc to modernize butter packaging equipment to increase production capacity, enhance product quality and expand market reach
• Pine River Pre-Pack in Newton (Manitowoc County) to install a natural gas line and replace the existing fuel oil-burning boiler and tank water heater at the processing facility
• Rosewood Dairy Inc. (Renard’s Cheese) in Sturgeon Bay to construct a stand-alone building to house several self-serve AI “smart coolers”
• Widmer’s Cheese Cellars in Theresa (Dodge County) to complete a new and improved milk intake design proposal

Since 2014, DATCP has received 283 proposals for Dairy Processor Grant, requesting more than $12 million. 148 of those proposals were funded, totaling $3.8 million.