Agropur expands its U.S. presence

LONGUEUIL, QC, Dec. 3 /CNW Telbec/ - Agropur's Board of Directors, Canada's largest dairy cooperative, is pleased to announce that it has acquired Green Meadows Foods, a new cheese factory located in the United States , in the State of Iowa.

"This most recent acquisition represents a great fit with our current operations and will allow us to keep building a strong foundation for continued growth", reported Agropur's CEO, Pierre Claprood.

The Iowa facility will now be part of Trega Foods' operations and will be overseen by Trega Foods' President, Doug Simon , who reports to Agropur Cheese and Functional Products Division's President, Louis Lefebvre .

About Green Meadows Foods

Green Meadows Foods is one of the newest cheese factories in the United States and officially launched its operations on November 3, 2008 . The facility can process approximately 400 million litres of milk a year. The plant produces over 35 million kg of cheese a year, including more than 10 different varieties of American and Italian cheeses. In addition, a little over 20 million kg of dried whey powders is extracted from the milk. The organization employs 85 people.

About Agropur

Founded in 1938, Agropur cooperative is a Canadian dairy industry leader, with $3.1 billion in annualized sales. It has 3,600 shareholders and, further to this latest acquisition, 5,000 employees distributed among its 27 plants and numerous distribution centres and offices across Canada , the U.S. and Argentina . It processes close to 2.7 billion litres of milk annually and offers an impressive array of products, including such popular brands as Québon, Oka, Sealtest, Natrel, Island Farms, Yoplait, La Lacteo and Schroeder.

For further information: Jean Brodeur, Vice-President, Communications and Public Relations, Agropur, [phone], ext. 4560