babcock dairy plant tour

Building Project

The project includes a new, three-story addition to Babcock Hall and renovated spaces in the current building for dairy plant manufacturing and processing.

The Center for Dairy Research and Babcock Hall Dairy Plant building project continues to move forward thanks to all of our industry support.

This $72.6 million project will create an addition to Babcock Hall for CDR and renovate spaces in the current building for dairy plant manufacturing and processing.

Members of the design team include representatives from: UW-Madison, College of Agricultural and Life Sciences (CALS), Food Science Department, CDR, Electrol Specialties Company, Global Food Safety Resource Group and the State Division of Facilities Development, in addition to Zimmerman Architectural Studios. This group is working to complete the building design. Once official reviews are finished for the final design, the State Division of Facilities Development will release the project for construction bids and construction will begin. For project updates and more information, visit the CALS website .

A special Thank You to our industry partners for contributing more than $18 million for this project to date. Additional pledges will be used to invest in state of the art processing equipment and technology for the project. Donors to the campaign.

If you are interested in donating click here . If you have additional questions regarding the campaign please contact: Henry Lagrimini, UW Foundation, 608-308-5375 | email [email protected] or CDR Director, John Lucey, 608-265-1195 | email [email protected] .

CDR Celebrates Babcock Hall Grand Opening

Take a Tour of CDR’s New Auditorium and Training Lab

Take a Tour of CDR’s New Applications Lab

Take a Tour of CDR’s New Sensory Area

Take a Tour of CDR’s New Specialty Cheese Caves

Take a Tour of CDR's Specialty Cheese Area

Take a Tour of CDR’s APT Vats

Take a Tour of CDR’s New Kalt Vat

Take a Tour of CDR’s APV Batch Evaporator

Babcock Hall public open house

Celebrate the Babcock Hall Dairy Plant renovation and Center for Dairy Research addition

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Live coverage: The 175th Anniversary Community Open House

The University of Wisconsin–Madison opens its door to the public this weekend for its 175th Anniversary Community Open House , featuring more than 90 events, from science experiments to a scavenger hunt to building tours. Follow along as everyone explores campus.

FRIDAY, APRIL 5

Welcome to campus.

And the doors are open. On a beautifully sunny day, the weekend’s first visitors went to build things at the College of Engineering Makerspace site, watched cheese being made at Babcock Dairy Plant and enjoyed a First Nations Cultural Landscape Tour.

From left to right, tour leaders Kane Funmaker and Abbey Woldt, both Ho-Chunk Tribal Nation members,, speak with participants during the First Nations Cultural Landscape Tour, a walking tour that welcomes guests to learn about the First Nations of Wisconsin in the area known as Teejop (Four Lakes). Photo: Althea Dotzour

Going with the flow

For some, the open house was all about the science, whether exploring how to make waves in the Water Science & Engineering Lab, talking about data science with faculty and students at one of the fastest growing areas of study at UW–Madison, or peeking through the Washburn Observatory telescope at the stars.

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In Cupcake Wars, frosting is a weapon

UW students joined in the open house fun with, of all things, a cupcake decorating contest, or as University Housing called it, Cupcake Wars. Check out some of these confections.

  View this post on Instagram   A post shared by UW–Madison University Housing (@housinguw)

SATURDAY, APRIL 6

Day 2, and more sunny skies.

The second day of the 175th Anniversary Open House features more Science Expedition activities, including an inside look at the weather imagery — and the rooftop view  at the Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences building. Also, Clifford the Big Red Dog made an appearance .

Visitors check out the campus views from the rooftop of the 15-story Atmospheric, Oceanic and Space Science (AOSS) building during the UW 175th Anniversary Open House. Photo: Jeff Miller

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Feel the energy

The public came to our campus, and they energized it. From the Geology Museum to the pie-throwing at the Union South Backyard Party to the exploration of the roof of the AOSS Building, smiles and learnings were everywhere.

Olayinka Olagbegi-Adegbite, assistant director of the African Studies program, plays the talking drum from Nigeria while 2-year-old Amira plays the Sakara drum during the Children’s African Story Hour in Ingraham Hall. Photo by: Althea Dotzour

Kids jump to the beat of the music as David Landau plays the guitar and sings kids songs at the Union South “Backyard Party.” Photo by: Taylor Wolfram

From left to right, Lucy Reed, Evan Reed, and Juliet Price build a tower using wooden blocks at the Union South “Backyard Party.” Photo by: Taylor Wolfram

Fun day at the @UWMadArchives for the #UW175 Open House weekend! pic.twitter.com/c0BqGoMXJ7 — Kacie Lucchini Butcher (@KacieLucchini) April 6, 2024

Matt Mark, academic program manager in the Art Department, holds a metalsmithing demonstration in the Mosse Humanities Building. Photo: Bryce Richter

SUNDAY, APRIL 7

Trucks and horses and bucky.

Some rain fell, but that didn’t discourage people who wanted to see fire engines and horses at Lot 131.

Tim Goers and his daughter Emmy pet mounted patrol horse Rettke as officer Jolene Eck (right) talks with them. Photo by: Bryce Richter

Families get a chance to see a Madison Fire Department fire truck and ambulance up close. Photo by: Bryce Richter

Amber Gray (right), Daniel Pfaff (with hand out) and Cedar Gray meet mounted patrol horse Rettke as officer Jolene Eck (left) talks with them during a UW in Motion outreach event on April 7, 2024. The event is part of the UW 175th anniversary community open house, a series of more than 60 events planned for April 5-7 to celebrate the legacy of innovation at the university. (Photo by Bryce Richter / UW–Madison) Photo by: Bryce Richter

Many also stopped by the Field House, to see how high they could jump, shoot baskets, admire the trophies and meet Bucky Badger.

Nora Baker jumps as high as she can as she takes part in the UW Family Fun Fair. Photo by: Bryce Richter

Young visitors jump around in an inflatable Wisconsin Athletics-themed inflatable bounce house as they take part in a UW Family Fun Fair. Photo by: Bryce Richter

Young visitors Beau Meyer, Ruby Barr, and Jackson Thorn (left to right) meet UW mascot Bucky Badger at the UW Family Fun Fair. Photo by: Bryce Richter

Visitors Annie Webb and her son Wesley look at a collection of UW–Madison athletics trophies as they take part in a UW Family Fun Fair event held at the UW Field House. Photo by: Bryce Richter

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College of Agricultural & Life Sciences

Ewe are what your grandparents ate, uw–madison celebrates completion of new and improved babcock hall facilities.

The time has come to celebrate the completion of a major construction project for UW–Madison’s Babcock Hall, the heart of the university’s dairy product research and training. The facility updates involved the renovation of the Babcock Hall Dairy Plant, known for its popular Babcock ice cream and award-winning cheeses, as well as a new, three-story addition for the Center for Dairy Research (CDR), a world-class resource for dairy processors and entrepreneurs.

The celebration involves a public open house 2:00 – 4:00 p.m. on Friday, Apr. 14 at Babcock Hall, located at 1605 Linden Drive. Everyone is welcome to this free event, which features an interactive self-guided tour highlighting the building’s new state-of-the-art spaces and the work that takes place in the facilities — plus an array of delicious samples. For more information, visit babcockhall.cals.wisc.edu .

The recently completed construction project represents the first major upgrade to the Babcock Hall Dairy Plant since it was built in 1951. The plant renovation modernized the facility, adding the latest equipment for milk processing, ice cream churning, milk bottling and cheese making. The plant also has new freezer space that will allow staff to make larger batches of ice cream, freeing up time for employees to develop new products ­­— including new ice cream flavors.

“We have a great space now to make the Babcock products that people have come to know and love,” says Scott Rankin, chair and professor in the Department of Food Science. “Just as important, the new facilities represent a huge step forward in the plant’s ability to serve as a laboratory and learning space for our students and university researchers, as well as industry personnel who come for professional training in the plant.”

For the Center for Dairy Research, the construction project provided the center with the space and equipment it needs to provide — and expand — its research and outreach missions. Each year, the CDR — which has been housed in Babcock Hall since it was founded in 1986 — works with more than 120 dairy companies and organizations to help them develop new products, troubleshoot production problems and train dairy professionals. CDR staff also work with UW graduate students on research projects designed to drive innovations in dairy products and processing.

With the CDR addition, the center now has its own food-grade, licensed pilot facility — with state-of-the-art research, instruction and small-scale manufacturing spaces — as well as a broader array of dairy food processing equipment. One exciting addition is the new suite of 10 ripening rooms for specialty cheeses (commonly called “cheese caves”), each with its own set of environmental controls that create specific ripening conditions, such as temperature, humidity and air flow, for aging all kinds of cheeses.

The center also has new equipment for the filtration, concentration, fermentation, separation and drying of milk, enabling CDR staff to work on specialty dairy products from cream cheese to Greek yogurt to whey powder. There’s also a new aseptic line, which is used to produce shelf-stable, dairy-based beverages, further expanding the CDR’s research capabilities and possible industry partners.

“Having a world-class facility like this enables us to attract the best people in dairy research — including faculty, staff and students — to Wisconsin, where we are in an ideal location to serve the state’s dairy processing industry,” says John Lucey, CDR director and professor of food science. “But we didn’t do it alone. Huge credit goes to the donors to the project, who helped fund the project and encouraged state officials to support it. Wisconsin’s dairy industry has provided long-term support to CDR, and now we have this exciting new facility that will generate innovations to add more value to our state’s high-quality milk.”

The total cost of the Babcock Hall renovation and expansion project was $72.9M. Project funding came from private donors, the State of Wisconsin and UW–Madison. Nearly 200 donors — primarily from the state’s cheese industry — fundraised over $18M to support the project.

“I’m seeing real pride and excitement in the Wisconsin dairy community over the opening and operation of the new Center for Dairy Research. Bringing this building project across the finish line was a challenge and a key career goal for a lot of people in the dairy industry,” says John Umhoefer, executive director of the Wisconsin Cheese Makers Association. “Other states have great dairy traditions, but I think everyone in the nation would agree: with this addition to Wisconsin’s dairy capabilities and brain trust, America’s Dairyland remains the center of gravity in the U.S. dairy industry.”

Wisconsin’s dairy sector generates $45.6 billion and 157,100 jobs in the state. Dairy processing accounts for roughly two-thirds of this contribution. With around 120 cheese plants, Wisconsin produces more than 3.4 billion pounds of cheese annually, accounting for around 25% of the national total, in more than 600 types, styles and varieties — nearly double the number of any other state.

INFORMATION FOR THE MEDIA: Contacts: John Lucey, CDR director and food science professor, via [email protected] ; Scott Rankin, professor and chair of the food science department, at [email protected] or (608) 263-2008; and Nicole Miller, CALS Office of External Relations, at [email protected]

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Babcock Hall

College of agricultural and life sciences | university of wisconsin-madison, babcock hall dairy plant renovation and center for dairy research addition, public open house draws around 450 visitors.

On Friday, Apr. 14, campus and community members had the opportunity to tour Babcock Hall’s new and improved facilities during a public open house that ran 2:00-4:00 p.m. that day. The event drew around 450 visitors.

It featured an interactive self-guided tour highlighting the building’s new state-of-the-art spaces. During the tour, participants exploreed the largest dairy research center in the United States, and learned about the products manufactured in the UW dairy plant. The tour’s seven stations featured an array of samples, including Babcock ice cream, along with tastings of various dairy products the CDR has been involved in developing.

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Mid-West Farm Report

Celebrating The New & Improved Babcock Facilities

April 11, 2023

Share this:

The time has come to celebrate the completion of a major construction project for UW–Madison’s Babcock Hall, the heart of the university’s dairy product research and training. The facility updates involved the renovation of the Babcock Hall Dairy Plant, known for its popular Babcock ice cream and award-winning cheeses, as well as a new, three-story addition for the Center for Dairy Research, a world-class resource for dairy processors and entrepreneurs.

The celebration involves a public open house 2:00 – 4:00 p.m. on Friday, Apr. 14 at Babcock Hall, located at 1605 Linden Drive. Everyone is welcome to this free event, which features an interactive self-guided tour highlighting the building’s new state-of-the-art spaces and the work that takes place in the facilities – plus an array of delicious samples. For more information, visit  babcockhall.cals.wisc.edu .

Pictured: Grad student Ben giving us a sample of Ullerup Mathers, a bleu cheese. CDR Director John Lucey stands in front of an Italian cheese called caciocavallo, meaning cheese horse, drying in one of 10 cheese caves. A copper cheese vat that requires a special permit because it’s not stainless steel. Copper is used for traditional alpine cheeses.

The recently completed construction project represents the first major upgrade to the Babcock Hall Dairy Plant since it was built in 1951. The plant renovation modernized the facility, adding the latest equipment for milk processing, ice cream churning, milk bottling and cheese making. The plant also has new freezer space that will allow staff to make larger batches of ice cream, freeing up time for employees to develop new products ­­– including new ice cream flavors.

“We have a great space now to make the Babcock products that people have come to know and love,” says Scott Rankin, chair and professor in the Department of Food Science. “Just as important, the new facilities represent a huge step forward in the plant’s ability to serve as a laboratory and learning space for our students and university researchers, as well as industry personnel who come for professional training in the plant.”

Pictured: Stephanie Hoff sampling a fresh cheese curd at CDR. Four new yogurt vats at CDR. Lucey standing in front of the spray dryer used for milk or whey.

For the Center for Dairy Research, the construction project provided the center with the space and equipment it needs to provide – and expand – its research and outreach missions. Each year, the CDR – which has been housed in Babcock Hall since it was founded in 1986 – works with more than 120 dairy companies and organizations to help them develop new products, troubleshoot production problems and train dairy professionals. CDR staff also work with UW graduate students on research projects designed to drive innovations in dairy products and processing.

With the CDR addition, the center now has its own food-grade, licensed pilot facility – with state-of-the-art research, instruction and small-scale manufacturing spaces – as well as a broader array of dairy food processing equipment. One exciting addition is the new suite of 10 ripening rooms for specialty cheeses (commonly called “cheese caves”), each with its own set of environmental controls that create specific ripening conditions, such as temperature, humidity and air flow, for aging all kinds of cheeses.

Pictured: John Jaeggi ‘milling’ cheese curds for a student project that looks at snack cheeses. The cheese curd slabs are sitting in the vat before getting chopped and milled. A student scoops yogurt and berries into sample cups for another event this week.

The center also has new equipment for the filtration, concentration, fermentation, separation and drying of milk, enabling CDR staff to work on specialty dairy products from cream cheese to Greek yogurt to whey powder. There’s also a new aseptic line, which is used to produce shelf-stable, dairy-based beverages, further expanding the CDR’s research capabilities and possible industry partners.

“Having a world-class facility like this enables us to attract the best people in dairy research – including faculty, staff and students – to Wisconsin, where we are in an ideal location to serve the state’s dairy processing industry,” says John Lucey, CDR director and professor of food science. “But we didn’t do it alone. Huge credit goes to the donors to the project, who helped fund the project and encouraged state officials to support it. Wisconsin’s dairy industry has provided long-term support to CDR, and now we have this exciting new facility that will generate innovations to add more value to our state’s high-quality milk.”

Pictured: Plant Manager Casey Whyte shows us the raw milk room, where milk is delivered and separated. Lucey stands in CDR’s new lecture room. Plant worker prepares to add fudge and caramel to a batch of ice cream.

Plant Manager Casey Whyte oversees the production of Babcock cheese, ice cream and fluid milk. He’s been with Babcock for almost 11 years, so he’s been around for the before and after of this project. He tells Mid-West Farm Report he’s looking forward to kicking off production this week in the new and improved dairy plant:

The total cost of the Babcock Hall renovation and expansion project was $72.9M. Project funding came from private donors, the State of Wisconsin and UW–Madison. Nearly 200 donors—primarily from the state’s cheese industry—fundraised over $18M to support the project.

“I’m seeing real pride and excitement in the Wisconsin dairy community over the opening and operation of the new Center for Dairy Research. Bringing this building project across the finish line was a challenge and a key career goal for a lot of people in the dairy industry,” says John Umhoefer, executive director of the Wisconsin Cheese Makers Association. “Other states have great dairy traditions, but I think everyone in the nation would agree: with this addition to Wisconsin’s dairy capabilities and brain trust, America’s Dairyland remains the center of gravity in the U.S. dairy industry.”

Pictured: Whyte comes out of the expanded ice cream cooler which is at -25 degrees inside. The Babcock Dairy Store logo. The exterior of CDR.

Wisconsin’s dairy sector generates $45.6 billion and 157,100 jobs in the state. Dairy processing accounts for roughly two-thirds of this contribution. With around 120 cheese plants, Wisconsin produces more than 3.4 billion pounds of cheese annually, accounting for around 25% of the national total, in more than 600 types, styles and varieties – nearly double the number of any other state.

Pictured: Consumer tasting booth and booths. The little window is for the sample to be slid to the sampler. A consumer panel meets today in the CDR kitchen to taste various products.

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University Creamery Managers Conference

Uw-madison’s babcock dairy will host the 20th annual university creamery managers conference from june 24 through june 27. to register, please visit https://babcockdairystore.wisc.edu/ucmc/ ., why we meet.

University Dairy Plants across the country are all different and have varying resources, needs and customer bases. However, their mission statements all include an emphasis on production, education and research. As part of a university, each of these dairy plants face unique challenges and are constantly discovering new ways to succeed. In order to share experiences and compare notes on how to do better, university dairy plant managers gather each year at the University Creamery Managers Conference.

In 2003, the University of Wisconsin hosted the first conference and around 15 managers from over 12 schools have convened annually since. During these conferences, dairy plant managers tour the hosting university’s campus, plant and store. For a few days, speakers share stories and mission statements as well as successful ways to overcome any struggles. There are many benefits to this conference but the one on one relationships among managers is by far the most valuable. These connections create a network across the country that will last for decades to come.

This year, attendees will hear from business development professionals and industry leaders, tour local production plants, network with fellow creamery managers and explore Madison, Wisconsin.

Events will include a tour of the newly-renovated Babcock Dairy Plant, a vendor reception with suppliers and a cruise on Lake Mendota.  Attendees and sponsors must register by May 1.

For the first time in the conference’s history, vendors will have the opportunity to sponsor a vendor reception. This reception will foster industry connections and introduce creamery managers to new potential suppliers.

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