Land O’ Lakes Relies on Crane to Optimize Cheese Plant Performance

Land O'Lakes is the #3 dairy co-op in the US (behind Dairy Farmers of America and California Dairies).  Land O'Lakes is owned by and serves more than 7,000 dairy farmer members and 1,300 community cooperatives. It provides its members with wholesale fertilizer and crop protection products, seed, and animal feed. Its oldest product, LAND O' LAKES butter, is the #1 butter brand in the US. Land O'Lakes also produces packaged milk, margarine, sour cream, and cheese.

The Land O’ Lakes cheese processing plant in Spencer, WI has relied on Crane for many years to provide fluid systems that optimize the plants performance.  Recently, the plant turned to Crane to repair a failed prototype pasteurizer system.  The system is a process used in producing all of the plant’s products.  Crane needed to design a system that could handle hundreds slurry food products, would not affect end product flavor, and could handle very thick products.  The system had to be self-cleaning and not require an operator to run.  Crane designed and engineered a prototype that met PMO, USDA, and 3A guidelines.  The pasteurizer had to be removed and the replacement system needed to be a turn key installation as the plant would be using an outside contactor due to lack of plant man power.