DREAMIES CREAMERY - Dallas, OR is a women-owned family business featuring sheep milk ice cream that is lactose-friendly, gluten-free, and dye-free for dairy-sensitive consumers.

PCC FUNDED: Milk bottling and labeling machine, refrigerator/freezer, training for manufacturing processes.

DON FROYLAN CREAMERY - Salem, OR produces authentic Mexican cheeses, delivering rich flavor rooted in heritage. Varieties include Queso Panela Botanero, Queso Asadero, and Crema Mexicana.

PCC FUNDED: Warm milk separator to increase butter fat content for ingredient consistency.

Fresno State graduate Joanie Snow exercised the full continuum of PCC student opportunities: Food Science and Nutrition undergraduate research on innovative dairy applications, master’s program research on physiological reactions to cheese aromas, funded internship and then hiring as a Quality Systems Supervisor at Leprino Foods. Under Dr. Carmen Licon’s direction, she conducted research projects with industry partners, won awards, and presented at forums such as the American Dairy Science Association and the Global Cheese Technology Forum.

COMMUNICATIONS INTERNS - Cal Poly SLO, CA

PCC FUNDED: Interns for social media, videography, and interviewing. Directed by Dr. Moses Mike, Agricultural Communication and Education Department

Cal Poly San Luis Obispo operates the Dairy Products Technology Center, a scaled-down pilot plant with equipment found in commercial facilities. Contact: Carmen Licon-Cano (carmenl@calpoly.edu).

Chapman University’s Food Innovation aids in research and development projects, teaching, and small-scale trials.
Contact: Anuradha Prakash (prakash@chapman.edu).

Fresno State University’s Dairy Processing Unit is part of the University Agriculture Laboratory (UAL) at California State University, Fresno. Contact: Daniel Avila (davila@csufresno.edu).

Oregon State University’s Arbuthnot Dairy Center supports education and research programs for individuals, family farmers, and smaller processors that produce dairy food in Oregon, as well as OSU and dairy food industry-related personnel.
Contact: Brandon Riesgaard (brandon.riesgaard@oregonstate.edu).

Washington State University’s Creamery offers small cheese vats, homogenizers, pasteurizers, and ice cream freezers to enable a variety of dairy processing and procedures.
Contact: Girish Ganjyal (girish.ganjyal@wsu.edu).

Collaboration unleashes our collective power to solve issues and create success stories. THANK YOU to funders, industry and academic partners, and dairy industry resources, including:

• Institutions of higher education
• State dairy promotion programs
• Research organizations
• The United States Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Marketing Services (USDA AMS)
• Our DBI colleagues in Tennessee, Vermont, and Wisconsin
• Industry stakeholders.

STRATEGY 5: TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE, CONSULTANCIES

Expertise can change lives, give hope, and build community. Dairy processors benefit from more than $10 million in technical assistance, as seen in examples below:

• Access to subject matter experts,
• Enhanced university pilot plants for troubleshooting/product development, and
• Industry designed training programs/certificates.

PCC FUNDED: More than 15 positions partially or fully to support technical assistance and hands-on consultancies and education.

Cal Poly SLO: Director, communications specialist, faculty expertise, student interns, admin. research associates.
Chapman University: Technician
Fresno State: Technician, student interns, postdoc, faculty expertise, program coordinator, grants management

Oregon State University: Dairy products specialist, event coordinator, postdoc, faculty expertise.

Washington State University: Event coordinator, extension specialist.

CERTIFICATES, 223 AWARDED

OSU’s Arbuthnot Dairy Center has expanded its Dairy Foods Manufacturing Online Series to include a complete Spanish-language track, Over 2,350 modules have been taken by 527 unique learners from 48 countries and 41 states.

CONFERENCES

Examples: Dairy Products, Process, and Packaging Innovation, an annual CDIC and Cal Poly collaboration; Dairy Innovation Day at Fresno State; and the annual Oregon Dairy Industries Conference.

WEBINARS, FOUR SERIES

Cal Poly SLO: Latin American Flavors, Exploring Cheese Traditions
Fresno State: Crisis Communication.
WSU: Sensory evaluation.
PCC Originated: Market Strategies, Dairy Packaging and Distribution.

COURSES/WORKSHOPS, 1686 ATTENDEES

Examples: Artisinal Cheesemaking, Art of a Perfect Charcuterie Board, Butter Making and Milk Fat Fundamentals, Cheesemaking for Beginners, Frozen Desserts Innovation, Ready-to-Drink Coffee Beverages with Milk.

Cheesemaking workshop at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, California.

California Spotlights

ALEC’S ICE CREAM (Petaluma, CA) is a pioneer in supporting regenerative agriculture through organic, responsibly sourced ingredients and A2/A2 dairy. The brand partners with small Land to Market™–certified farms in Oregon and Northern California to produce probiotic-rich, gluten-free ice cream.

PCC FUNDED: A small footprint Econoseal Spartan Cartoner to efficiently package ice cream.

SCHOCH FAMILY FARMSTEAD (Salinas, CA) has focused on land stewardship since 1944 while moving toward producing artisan-quality milk, cheese, and yogurt. Through conservation partnerships and practices such as rotational grazing and habitat restoration, the family continues a long-standing commitment to environmental responsibility.

PCC FUNDED: Equipment such as a stainless steel butter churn and pump, hart portion cutter, crate cart, stacking system, cream separator, heat exchanger with water heater, and aqua tech bottle washer.

CREAMLINE FARMS (Milton-Freewater, OR) is a small family owned and operated, pasture-based dairy and processor of whole and flavored milks, plus European style cultured butters. It is the only dairy in the Walla Walla Valley.

PCC FUNDED: An online separator to allow creation of high value products such as heavy cream, half-and-half, skim milk, and buttermilk, and a component analyzer to keep products consistent and ensure compliance for minimum production requirements for fat content.

RUBY JEWEL (Portland, OR) was founded in 2004 to serve a market opportunity of high-quality ice cream sandwiches. Ingredients were sourced from local farmers and products debuted at the Portland Farmers Market. A key milestone: Founder Lisa Herlinger won the Food Fight comptition at the OSU Food Innovation Center and commercialized the product to scale into retail and online sales.

PCC FUNDED: Capacity-building equipment to automate product manufacturing, increase the number of sandwiches produced, utilize a fruit feeder for ice cream inclusions, and simplify pallet wrapping for transport.

ANDERSEN DAIRY (Battle Ground, WA) is a family-owned processor that supplies fluid milk and products to more than 30 retail locations in Washington and Oregon. It supports regional dairy farms, maintains long-standing retail partnerships, and contributes through employment and charitable engagement.

PCC FUNDED: Modernization of packaging capper, cart loader, and case stacker to increase operational efficiencies and reduce manual labor while preserving and growing jobs.

LOST PEACOCK CREAMERY (Olympia, WA) is a first-generation, family-operated goat dairy practicing regenerative agriculture that emphasizes education while modeling scalable approaches for small-acreage dairy operations.

PCC FUNDED: Vacuum stuffer and automatic clipper for goat cheese chubs that reduce employee turnover and total packaging time per bath as well as provide consistent product weights and a longer shelf life. Additional investments include new product labeling, packaging, and a label dispenser integral to increasing geographic market reach.

Curriculum for Understanding and Reimagining Dairy (CURD) is a hands-on school for future cheesemakers, career transitions, and food professionals. Students learn everything from milk microbiology to aging techniques and marketing strategies.

Sponsored by the Pacific Coast Coalition–DBII and supported by the Daphne Zepos Teaching Endowment, the CURD program offers online learning modules (below) with a two-week, in-person cheesemaking training from August 10-21, 2026.

Simply, CURD blends tradition with innovation, integrating established methods with modern technology and contemporary consumer needs.

For more information: carmenl@calpoly.edu.

Milkulture connects science, technology, and culture to:

• Expand specialty and traditional dairy production
• Inspire innovation rooted in tradition
• Attract students to dairy careers
• Support entrepreneurship with pilot plant access,
• Strengthen university research and training capacity.

To learn more about the Milkulture community, contact: carmenl@calpoly.edu