Michelle Farner, Director of Dairy Production at UWRF, spoke to Rotary about the pilot plant renovation at the university. Unfortunately, our club's reporting staff were all out of town for the meeting. The paragraphs below are a summary of an article in the Pierce County Journal, July 26th edition.
The dairy pilot plant renovation project is nearing completion after about 10 years since the need was recognized and the planning began. Farner and Chancellor Gallo both emphasized how the pilot plant will create hands-on learning experiences for students, and they emphasized the positive impact on Wisconsin's dairy industry. In the Journal article, the increased capacity of the new pasteurizer was emphasized. The previous dairy plant had been decommissioned five years ago because the equipment wasn't functioning as needed. Replacing key equipment has taken much longer than originally anticipated.
As Gallo and Farner both said, industry input and support has been important. Gallo also noted in the Journal that this project had an unusually large percentage of private funding. In recognition of that fact, the plant will be renamed as the Wuetrich Family/Grassland Dairy Center of Excellence.
About the Speaker: Michelle Farner is currently the Director of Dairy Production at UWRF. She holds a BS degree in Food Systems and Technology from UW-Stout and a MS degree in Agricultural Education from UWRF. She is a member of several professional organizations related to the dairy industry.