Yesterday, High Desert Milk, a six-member dairy cooperative in Burley, Idaho, broke ground on a new milk processing plant in Burley. The cooperative was formed in 2001, and its members currently milk 22,000 cows and farm 30,000 acres in Cassia dn Twin Falls, Idaho counties. The new plant will have the capacity to process more than 2 million pounds of milk per day into powered milk.

In addition to seeking a stable market for their milk and vertically integrating their business, the dairymen owners also want to help their community, said Karl Nelson, general manager of High Desert Milk Inc. The new plant will employ 30 workers in the first phase and more in the three phases to follow, Nelson said.

Bob Naerebout, executive director of the Idaho Dairymen’s Association, said the plant is significant in Idaho’s dairy industry. “We think it’s great to have a new milk plant. And we commend those dairymen for investing in infrastructure that is very important to the continued success of the dairy industry in Idaho,” Naerebout said.