Since the verdant fields of upstate New York are home to Byrne Dairy’s most important partners—the cows that reside on 270 contracted farms—an emphasis on earth-friendly practices makes sense.

Recently installed state-of-the-art equipment reduces demands on natural resources, and PET packaging offers consumers recyclable convenience, along with the utmost in food safety. Bovine growth hormone-free milk, certified in writing by the farmers and proudly designated on labels (which exceeds FDA requirements), assures customers that Byrnes Dairy delivers the best tasting, most healthful products possible.

It also seems fitting that a company born in the Great Depression should prove adept at not only weathering, but expanding, in economically challenging times. Founded in 1933 by Matthew V. Bryne, who achieved revenues of $900 per month delivering milk to Syracuse, N.Y. residents in horse-drawn wagons, this third-generation, family-managed business is currently extending distribution far beyond the Eastern Seaboard thanks to longer-life dairy and non-dairy products.

Carl Byrne, president and CEO for the past three years, began working at the dairy company after graduating college at 21. He remains committed to the standards of excellence set by his grandfather and continued by his father—a former company president who still handles special projects for the company—and two uncles, while actively pursuing the latest technological capabilities.

Historically, the company has adapted quickly to changing times. In the 1950s, when home delivery waned as women entered the work force, neighborhood shops were opened to meet customer needs. Today, a chain of 52 Byrne Dairy full-service convenience stores, run by Byrne’s brother Mark, flourish throughout the region.

Company facilities include corporate headquarters in Lafayette, N.Y., an 18,000-square-foot office that opened last spring, a fresh milk and juice plant, plus a separate ice cream plant in Syracuse and a specialized ultra-pasteurization plant in DeWitt, N.Y.

Recent investment in a Pilot Processing Plant at the DeWitt locale makes Byrne Dairy an advantageous choice for co-packaging and private labeling.

“Co-packing has been a significant part of our growth. The Pilot can ultra-pasteurize milk in the same way that our main plant does. It sterilizes product at 285 degrees and holds it for four seconds, and can also pasteurize at 170 degrees and hold it for 20 seconds,” Byrne says. “We can give small quantities of everything from vanilla milk and coffee creamer to soy milk—anything that a customer might want to scale up and make in the large plant. The difference here is that few, if any, companies have Pilot units that can offer processing that’s identical to the main plant. Previously, people would have to travel typically to a university to develop small-batch formulas then take them to a plant to be scaled up. At Byrne Dairy, you get a good flavor profile that will be the same in full processing, and you can do it all on-site, under one roof.” An in-house attorney serves as a contract manager, negotiating five- to 10-year agreements.

A newly installed $25 million Sidel Predis bottle filler, the only one of its kind in the country, positions Byrne Dairy as a national brand. “European technology in milk processing is more advanced. It’s mostly ultra-pasteurized and a lot of it is extended shelf life or aseptic. When Byrne Dairy wanted to market milk across the Untied States, which you can’t do with a 15- to 20-day shelf life, we looked to Europe. By processing on a Sidel system, where we blow the bottles in the filler, and in the same filler foil-seal and cap them, I can get milk with a 120-day shelf life out there. That makes it easier to go through the supply chains coast-to-coast,” Byrne says.

The inline rotary filler produces up to 300 bottles of product per minute in 8-, 12-, 16- and 32-ounce sizes, and can also make tamper-evident caps that eliminate the foil seal, a child-friendly enhancement with parent appeal.

What differentiates the Sidel Predis from other American long-life fillers is the process of dry decontamination, which utilizes heated and vaporized hydrogen peroxide to sterilize materials prior to molding and filling. “What that means is you don’t flood the bottle,” Byrne explains. “In the past, sterilizing meant filling the bottle with a combination of purified water and hydrogen peroxide. This is more cost efficient: You’re not using the water or the energy—bottles have to be dried after flooding—and with a smaller footprint, this system doesn’t need as much space or equipment.”

A 16-ounce ESL (Extended Shelf Life) Sidel-produced line that launched early this year includes Chocolate (3.25% fat), Low Fat Chocolate (1% fat,), Low Fat Strawberry (1% fat), Fat Free White, Low Fat White (2% fat), Vitamin D, Iced Cappuccino and Iced Mocha Cappuccino, plus a complete line of flavored non-dairy creamers, all sporting splashy new labels intended to “enhance visibility” and build “brand awareness with consumers.”

Manufacturing capabilities offer such features as custom molds, a neck skirting option, the flexibility of full-sleeve wrap or roll-on labeling and a bottling size range that extends from a 6-ounce minimum to an 84-ounce maximum, with a minimum batch run of 6,000 gallons. Additional benefits of the Sidel Predis system encompass everything from Kosher certification by the Orthodox Union (OU) to an ability to add health-promoting plant sterols or Omega 3s to beverages. ESL products, which require refrigeration, boast a shelf life of 90 days—thus reducing the number of deliveries and easing distribution to convenience stores, fast-food restaurants and food-vending companies.

Byrne Dairy supplies grocery chains and large food service wholesalers. “Customers will call and order, say, 10 trailer-loads of a particular product, and that goes to warehouses across the country that are either owned by the customers or have been appointed as their distributors,” says Byrne. Products from the fresh milk plant in Syracuse are typically transported by the company’s award-winning fleet, which has been recognized by The New York State Motor Truck Association for outstanding achievement in highway safety, while most products from the DeWitt plant are handled by common carrier.

In the past year, when many companies found it necessary to trim staffing, at least 75 new members were added to Byrnes Dairy employment rolls. “About 15 or 20 were higher-end professionals—including a human resources director to help with recruitment—in the areas of logistics, finance, marketing and store development, plus some support staff. And with the new equipment, there were a variety of positions hired. We also put in a line of general managers throughout our business, which we had never really had up until about two years ago,” Byrnes says. “In addition to having IT techs, we brought in a director of information. Our central computer system is an AS400 platform—we have three of those—and we’re going to move to a software that will better manage the supply chain and products as they go through the company.”

One of the most significant recent hires is a quality control manager. “We went out to the market and found someone who had worked for Ben and Jerry’s, McCormick and Safeway, and we brought that person on about a year and a half ago, and they’ve made an incredible impact on our business and the quality that we bring to the marketplace every day,” says Byrne.

The managerial style at Byrne Dairy places a focus on commitment to goals, good communication and “swimming upstream” with new innovation. “And we try to over-deliver to the customer,” says Byrne. “Those are the four things I want people thinking about in the course of their day while they work at Byrne. Everybody here should know our vision, our mission and our core values—and they all have team and department goals that roll into key goals for the company.” The cows simply have to be contented.

VITAL STATS
BYRNE DAIRY, INC.
PRESIDENT & CEO: Carl Byrne
HEADQUARTERS: Lafayette, N.Y.
EMPLOYEES: 1,300
’09 VOLUME: Over 1/2 billion pounds of fluid milk
’08 SALES: $500 million
GOALS: To expand sales 20 percent annually and continually develop its human resources to fulfill its commitment to safety, quality and efficiency.

From Beverage World February 15, 2010