PACKAGING TECHNOLOGIES 

Artificial intelligence (AI) is drastically changing the way the world operates. From production and preparation to ordering and delivery, AI systems are revolutionizing the food and beverage industry.

INSIDE THE PLANT 

From running the pasteurizer to pumping fresh milk to adding the all-important starter culture to putting the cheese in forms and pressing it down, Master Cheesemaker Tony Hook is hands-on when crafting 70 flavors of aged cheddars, blues and mixed milk cheeses that bear the name of Hook’s Cheese.

PROCESSING TECHNOLOGIES

Ongoing enhancements to conveyors and palletizers are creating a plethora of operational improvement opportunities for dairy processors, who can achieve strong returns on investment while strengthening performance, analysts note.

INGREDIENT TECHNOLOGIES 

The battle of dairy versus plant-based products continues to intensify. This month, as a follow-up to our September feature, we continue to look at alternative dairy, offering a focus on ingredients.

OUTLOOK REPORT 

Although eCommerce may not be be in the cards for every dairy processor, it can definitely add additional revenue to a company's bottom line. We offer an in-depth look at what dairy processors should consider before embarking on this journey.

PROCESSOR PROFILE 

While family-run Hooks Cheese only has seven full-time employees, this 8,500-square-foot cheesemaking plant — originally built as a livery stable to the Washington Hotel in 1875 and is on the National Register of Historic Places — has transcended history as one of the first cheese companies in Wisconsin to perfect the art and science of mixed milk cheeses.

DAIRY FOODS EXTRA 

With PROOF Hard Ice Cream currently expanding at a blazing pace, corporate executives acknowledge they will soon outgrow its 4,000-square-foot South Carolina plant.

EXPORTER OF THE YEAR  

South Carolina is perhaps where the next great dairy segment has been born: alcohol-infused ice cream. At the forefront of the alcohol-infused ice cream movement is PROOF Hard Ice Cream, led by Jennifer Randall, co-founder and CEO, and Dirk Brown, co-founder and chairman, who founded the start-up in 2014.

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