Seattle-Based Company to Purchase Shullsburg Cheese Plant

On Monday, July 20th, Prairie Farms laid off 97 employees from the White Hill Cheese Plant and Shullsburg Creamery combined. Now, the Telegraph Herald reports that a Seattle-based company is purchasing one of the two Shullsburg cheesemaking facilities where the layoffs occurred.

That company is Beecher's Handmade Cheese. The company has an agreement in place to acquire the White Hill Cheese Plant at 110 Miner Way in Shullsburg come mid-September. With that, the company plans to provide roughly three-dozen jobs, and has plans to grow.

The White Hill Cheese Plant is Getting Acquired:

Kurt Beecher Dammeier, the founder and owner of Beecher's Handmade Cheese, spoke to the Telegraph Herald upon the announcement of the acquisition. He stated that the company's cheese and frozen food line has been very successful, and the move to purchase the White Hill Cheese Plant was related to the need for more internal capacity.

This week, Prairie Farms Dairy announced sweeping layoffs at both the White Hill Cheese Plant (54 employees) and the Shullsburg Creamery on Water Street (43 employees).

Per Telegraph Herald, Prairie Farms said in a statement that the company elected to cease operations at both facilities "as part of an ongoing evaluation of its manufacturing network." Shullsburg is a town of only a little over 1,300 people, so when 97 lost their jobs out of nowhere this week, the tight-knit community was understandably rocked.

For lifelong residents of Shullsburg, the Prairie Farms layoffs recall the closure of area mines in the 1970s, which rocked the town's economy and had significant reverberations as a result. Shullsburg Mayor Dan Morrissey spoke to the Telegraph Herald about the layoffs:

I was just shocked. I wasn't expecting that. This is a small community, and it will be tough to recoup those jobs. The sad part is that there are some cases where a husband and a wife would both be working there - Shullsburg Mayor Dan Morrissey, per Telegraph Herald

About Beecher's Handmade Cheese:

Founded in 2003, Beecher's Handmade Cheese was the first artisanal cheesemaker in Seattle at the time. Their products are free of artificial ingredients. Right off the bat, Dammeier revealed plans for 35 to 40 jobs to be available following the completion of Beecher's acquisition of the White Hill Cheese Plant.

Dammeier also made clear he's aware of the pressure Beecher's will face in Shullsburg, especially with residents still raw from the layoffs. He told the Telegraph Herald that his company plans to be "big participants" in the city's annual Cheesefest, and also stated that if Prairie Farms chooses to close the city's downtown retail store, Beecher's will make the move to take it over or open its own store.

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One of the big draws for Dammeier to acquire the White Hill property was its existing infrastructure as well as its wastewater treatment facility. While Mayor Morrissey has received inquiries about the Shullsburg Creamery property, he has referred those interested to Prairie Farms. At this time, the future of that building/business is unclear.

Read more about Beecher's Handmade Cheese acquiring the White Hill Cheese Plant in Shullsburg on the Telegraph Herald's website.