Better Butter Through Mechanization

Published: September 22, 2007

By YVETTE SAARINEN
of the News-Register

Chief Executive Officer Mike Anderson swears that some of the best butter in the country is made at Farmers Cooperative Creamery right here in McMinnville.

He got no argument from those who hopped on the McMinnville Area Chamber of Commerce Insiders' Tour Friday morning. After touring the plant, they got to slather FCC's signature Rose Valley Sweet Cream Butter, salted and unsalted, on a variety of baked goods.

Rose Valley's butter now comes in a U.S. Department of Agriculture certified organic blend. It is being made exclusively of milk from cows not treated with the synthetic growth hormone rBGH.

FCC's board of directors is banking on the willingness of consumers to pay more for a premium product, Anderson said, so FCC is changing its focus from bulk processing to natural or sustainable processing. "It's one of the fastest growing markets in the United States and FCC aims to be the leader on the West Coast," he said.

The creamery churns out 6,000 to 7,000 pounds of butter an hour, year round. Part is for Rose Valley and part is for private labels like Meadowsweet, which goes to restaurants in Oregon and Washington.

FCC just inked an agreement with Roth's Your Family Markets to feature Rose Valley as a Northwest product. It also sells bulk milk to the likes of Safeway, Fred Meyer and the Alpenrose Dairy.

FCC also produces traditional powdered milk and powdered butter milk, packaging it in up to 2,000-pound bags for industrial customers. The plant is fully automated, but still requires a full-time crew of about 50.

The computer-controlled machinery includes a mesmerizing, precisely programmed packager that tightly wraps bricks of butter without damaging the soft product.

The creamery recently invested about $500,000 in a computer-controlled powder bagger custom-made for its use by a New Zealand company. Industry people come from all over the world to see it in action, Anderson said.

The process used to be highly labor-intensive. The investment not only reduced labor costs, but increased the quality of the product, he said.

The creamery also aims to be a good steward of the environment, Anderson said. Over the years, it has taken measures to greatly reduce its water consumption.

It recently installed an on-site wastewater treatment facility. It removes 96 percent of the solids before passing the watery remains on to the city's treatment system.

The solids are dried and used as fertilizer. "We don't waste a thing here," Anderson said.

FCC is a cooperative of 78 member dairies strung along the valley from Klamath Falls to Olympia, Wash., with inland pockets near Redmond and Yakima, Wash. Founded in 1931, it moved to its present site on North Highway 99W in 1939.