Kleinpeter ice cream

After battling—and successfully overcoming—quality issues at its Airline Highway plant for much of the past year, Kleinpeter Farms Dairy has halted production of its ice cream lines and is considering outsourcing production to another dairy.

President and CEO Jeff Kleinpeter, who has spent some $3 million in recent months on improvements and upgrades at the family-owned dairy, does not attribute the decision to lagging ice cream sales or to the need for cost savings. Rather, he says, Kleinpeter is trying to find the best possible manager to oversee ice cream production and has yet to identify someone who measures up to the dairy’s standards.

“One of our challenges has been to find good consistent management for our ice cream plant. Our original manager, Don Gerald, was basically a rock star in this department and he has been a hard act to follow since his retirement,” Kleinpeter says. “Every year during the winter, there is a lull in ice cream production, as demand falls off. This year’s winter lull coincides with our search for a new ice cream manager. … If we cannot find an expert manager who meets our standards, the door is open to outsourcing the production of our ice cream to a company that specializes in ice cream production.”

Kleinpeter says he hopes not to resort to outsourcing but that it is a possibility. In the meantime, some stores are still carrying the ice cream, as the dairy has enough packaged product on hand to continue stocking local freezers for the time being.

The decision to halt ice cream production comes after months of turmoil at Kleinpeter Farms Dairy, which was hit hard earlier this year when customers began complaining of problems with the taste and shortened shelf life of its milk. Read a Business Report cover story from May on the issues and how the company was addressing them. Amid lagging sales, canceled contracts and critical reports from state inspectors, the dairy brought in consultants, who identified problems with Kleinpeter’s aging equipment. Those problems have since been addressed and the dairy has achieved a coveted national designation as a Safe Quality Foods production facility.

Kleinpeter launched its premium ice cream line in 2008. Three years later, it introduced a high-end gourmet product, Creme de la Kleinpeter. —