Le Mars, Iowa — A dairy foods company in Minnesota is trying to force those who run a Le Mars plant to comply with the terms of a manufacturing and packaging agreement contract. Old Home Foods is a dairy company, whose biggest customer is Cub Foods.
According to documents in a suit filed in federal court in Minnesota, in 2012, Old Home entered into a Manufacturing and Supply Agreement with Dean Foods for the manufacturing and packaging of Old Home products at a dairy co-packing facility in Le Mars. The Kemps company took over the Le Mars facility from Dean Foods in 2020. The documents say Kemps wanted the ownership transition to be as seamless and transparent for Old Home as possible.
But on June 24 of this year, Kemps informed Old Home that they would no longer be making Old Home’s products as of January 1st because that capacity at the plant was “spoken for.” Old Home says the Co-Packing Agreement’s annual term runs until May 31, 2025, and if Kemps doesn’t give them until then, they will be forced out of business as they will be unable to find an alternative in time.
The suit accuses Kemps of breach of contract and seeks injunctive relief. Old Home has found other facilities for its sour cream, chip dip, and snack dips, but not for its cottage cheese, which is made in the Le Mars facility.
Picture from Pixabay user DianaLavrova
