US dairy feed company announces $27 million plant expansion
West Central, the manufacturer of SoyPlus, a high bypass protein dairy feed, announced its plan for a major expansion which would increase production capacity by 50%.
The $27 million investment in Ralston, Iowa is slated to include an additional line of mechanical presses, soybean storage, soybean oil storage, finished product storage, and load-out access. The company plans for actual production to come online in phases with new production volumes available as early as fall 2016.
Strong domestic and international demand
“Nutritionists and dairy producers worldwide trust SoyPlus for its proven quality and consistency,” explained Mark Cullen, executive vice president of animal nutrition at West Central. “Expanding the process at our current manufacturing site allows us to continue our more than 30 year tradition of going beyond bypass with customer service and supply chain reliability.” Due to strong domestic and international demand, the company’s current Ralston, Iowa facility has been producing at maximum capacity for more than a year.
An additional six million bushels of soybeans each year
SoyPlus, a member of West Central’s Dairy Nutrition Plus family of quality products, provides a uniform 60 percent RUP and 93% digestibility. The company plans to expand its current ISO and hazard analysis critical control point (HACCP) certifications upon construction completion and will continue to transport finished product by truck and rail. As a farmer-owned cooperative, West Central originates soybeans from more than a dozen counties in western Iowa. At full capacity, the SoyPlus expansion would create demand for an additional 6 million bushels of soybeans each year and create 11 full-time jobs.
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