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Informational hearing: $3 million grant requested to upgrade First District dairy wastewater pretreatment system
Summary
First District Foods and the bill sponsor told the committee that a $3 million Public Facilities Authority grant would fund a wastewater pretreatment upgrade at the Litchfield plant; the hearing was informational only.
Representative Van Buren Bergen presented House File 3033 as an informational item. The bill would authorize a $3 million grant to the Public Facilities Authority (PFA) for First District’s new wastewater pretreatment facility.
Bob Hoffman, president and CEO of First District (Litchfield), told the committee that the plant processes about 40 percent of Minnesota’s milk and that meeting a schedule of compliance with the MPCA requires upgrades the company cannot complete without additional funds. He said the supply chain and the plant support roughly 3,000 jobs across 45 counties, including farm‑level jobs, plant employees, truck drivers and retail partners; Hoffman said failure to meet compliance could force production cuts of “at least 50%” or a shutdown.
Why it matters: First District’s production affects broad portions of the state dairy supply chain; the sponsor said the grant would preserve jobs and avoid region‑wide economic impacts if the plant had to curtail operations under an MPCA compliance order.
Action: The committee held an informational hearing only; no committee vote was taken on the grant authorization during this session.
Ending: Sponsors asked committee members to consider funding through the PFA; committee chairs said they would evaluate options as part of broader capital and bonding conversations.
