Babcock Hall Dairy Plant, Madison, Wisconsin, was selected as the Cheese and Butter Grand Champion and Gifford’s Dairy, Skowhegan, Maine, was selected as the Grade A & Ice Cream Grand Champion of the World Dairy Expo (WDE) Championship Dairy Product Contest. This year’s contest, sponsored by the Wisconsin Dairy Products Assn. (WDPA), received a record number of 705 entries for cheese, butter, fluid milk, yogurt, cottage cheese, ice cream, sour cream, sherbet, cultured milk, sour cream dips, whipping cream, dried whey and creative/innovative products from throughout the U.S.
“It is amazing how dairy manufacturers have embraced this contest,” says Brad Legreid, executive director of WDPA. “Due to the tremendous support from dairy companies throughout North America, the World Dairy Expo Championship Dairy Product Contest has averaged a 25 percent annual rate of growth over its first nine years. This is unprecedented growth for a relatively new contest. This growth is a direct reflection of the high level of interest that dairy processors have in entering the only judging contest of its kind in North America. Because this contest is all encompassing, dairy manufacturers have the unique opportunity to compete in a prestigious, all-dairy national contest.”
Judging was held on Aug. 16 at University of Wisconsin–Madison’s Babcock Hall and Aug. 17-18 at the Madison Area Technical College (MATC) Culinary School. Click here to download a pdf of the contest's top scores.
On Oct. 4, the contest’s auction will be held at World Dairy Expo in Madison, at which time all category first place winners will be auctioned off. A portion of the proceeds from the auction will be used to fund the Dr. Robert Bradley Scholarship Fund. This scholarship will be awarded annually to a deserving student pursuing a career in the dairy industry. The auction will begin at 5 p.m. and will feature Doug Wilson, Cooperative Resources International, as the auctioneer. For more information on the contest and auction, call (608) 836-3336. PD
—From World Dairy Expo news release
