Following a meeting with Producteurs de lait de chèvre du Québec (Quebec goat milk producers), Agropur Cooperative has announced it will move forward with its plan to close a Quebec goat milk plant in March, 2020.
Talks with producers who supplied the plant began about a year ago. Agropur says it worked on alternatives to closing the plant, however, any proposed ideas had to be economically viable to justify keeping the St-Damase plant open. According to the dairy processing company, one of them proved workable.
A confidentiality agreement was signed by both parties which prevents them from publicly disclosing the options that were discussed. The Cooperative will continue taking goat’s milk until the end of December, as planned, in accordance with a previous agreement with Quebec goat milk producers.
In a news release, Agropur calls it, “an unfortunate outcome for (them) and Quebec’s goat industry.” In an email sent to RealAgriculture, Quebec goat milk producers say they are, “surely disappointed by the news” and that the board will be meeting soon to discuss releasing a full statement on the plant closure.
This story will be updated as more information becomes available.