A new dairy processing plant is under construction in western Kansas. The Kansas Department of Agriculture says the facility could be an important catalyst to spur additional growth in the Kansas dairy sector.
Since 2010, total milk output in Kansas has increased 24 percent. Last year, the approximately 143,000 dairy cows in the state produced 3 billion pounds of milk, valued at nearly $750 million. In 2013, the dairy industry in Kansas supported more than 5,800 jobs and contributed just over $1 billion to the state’s economy.
Mary Soukup, assistant to the Kansas Secretary of Agriculture, says the new facility in Garden City, Meadowlark Dairy Nutrition, will cut costs and make it more efficient for milk farmers to get raw milk product to the processing plant.
"That will help make Kansas more attractive as [farmers] look to expand their operations, and when that happens that benefits the entire Kansas economy," Soukup says. "Ag is the largest contributor to the Kansas economy."
When completed, the plant will process about 4 million pounds of raw milk daily from local dairy farms. The raw milk will be converted into a dry milk powder sold throughout the U.S. and globally.
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Carla Eckels is assistant news director and the host of Soulsations. Follow her on Twitter @Eckels.
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