Prairie Farms Company
Prairie Farms Dairy is very cooperative with its suppliers. With about 800 members, Prairie Farms is one of the largest dairy cooperatives in the Midwest. It is the managing partner for four joint ventures with smaller dairies (Hiland Dairy Foods, Roberts Dairy, Muller Pinehurst Dairy, and Ideal American). Prairie Farms turns their raw milk into fresh, cultured, and frozen dairy products under the Prairie Farms label. It also makes juices and North Star brand ice cream novelties. The company's products are sold in stores, schools, and to institutional clients in the Midwest. Subsidiary PFD Supply distributes food and paper products to fast-food restaurants, including Burger King and McDonald's.
Early members of Prairie Farms might hardly recognize their co-op today. Organized originally as Producers Creamery of Carlinville, it was later renamed Prairie Farms Creamery of Carlinville. 'Today, after more than 50 mergers, consolidations and acquisitions, it's Prairie Farms Dairy Inc. 'When we put Prairie Farms Dairy Inc. together in 1962, our total yearly sales were about $16 million," Southwell says. "In the last 10 years, our growth has been about $500 million." Southwell attributes much of the co-op's growth to its acquisitions. On its own, Prairie Farms operates 17 plants and 36 distribution centers, and employs 2,100 people in eight Midwest states. But add in its five joint ventures and the numbers soar.