Milk Specialties Global doubles lactose production in California
The additional lactose production capacity, which came online in late 2020, is driven by increased demand for dairy ingredients in Asia and other overseas markets.
CEO David Lenzmeier said, “We always strive to make the best products on the market and deliver better value to our customers. The project we just completed at our Visalia facility furthers our ability to deliver a high-quality product at a good value.”
Lactose is a co-product of the dairy protein concentration process, and is the largest component in milk. Milk Specialties Global produces lactose for organic and conventional specifications to meet customer needs; this expansion will help support those offerings.
Milk Specialties began producing milk protein concentrate at its Visalia facility in 2012, and permanently acquired the facility in 2019. The company has since invested in improvements including expanding capacity and operational efficiencies to improve the facility’s carbon footprint. In addition to its expanded role in lactose production, the Visalia facility produces other milk proteins and micellar casein.
Milk Specialties Global has other manufacturing facilities in Wisconsin, Minnesota, Nebraska and Illinois. The core of its business is in protein ingredients (whey protein concentrates, isolates and hydrolysates, as well as milk protein concentrates, isolates and micellar casein), lactose and permeate as well as value-added ingredients.
