Johnson putting a new
twist on an old business
twist on an old business
By Justin R. Lessman
Ethan Johnson is about to put a new twist on an old business.
Johnson plans to open Amo Creamery on his family’s rural Heron Lake farm in the near future. The creamery will produce and sell creamline whole milk, cheese curds and cheddar cheese on the very same farm where the cows are milked.
For Johnson, it’s a way to keep the family business and way of life he loves viable, all while helping to meet a growing demand for fresh, locally produced, high-protein dairy products.
Milk in the blood
Johnson has milk in his blood.
His great-grandfather was the first in the family to settle in Minnesota, eventually owning and operating a farm in Jackson County’s Kimball Township. Johnson’s grandfather seeded the purchase of his own farm near Heron Lake first by selling his cigarette and chocolate rations to fellow soldiers while in the service, then by baling and selling hay.
“By 1969, he had bought this farm, and, from the beginning, they always had some cows,” Johnson said. “They started milking about 20, then expanded to 40.”
By then, the historic Amo Creamery — which was located a few miles from the farm — was out of business, Johnson said, so the milk was shipped first to Storden and later to Mt. Lake.
Johnson’s father stayed in the dairy business and Johnson and his three siblings grew up as “dairy kids.”
“I was always known as the ‘dairy kid,’” he said. “I’ve always enjoyed being in the industry.”
Johnson’s three older siblings all studied dairy science in college and pursued employment in the dairy production industry. Johnson himself decided to head in a slightly different direction, even in light of changes in the industry.
“When I was in high school, it was clear the dairy industry was changing and many small dairies were finding it more and more difficult to exist,” he said. “Still, I knew I wanted to stay involved in the industry.”
Johnson studied dairy manufacturing at South Dakota State University in Brookings. While in college, he worked at the SDSU Dairy Bar, helping to manufacture and market the university’s famous ice cream.
“The dairy manufacturing program at SDSU is a fantastic program with a 100 percent job placement rate,” he said. “I really enjoyed my time there.”
In the course of his studies, Johnson got the chance to tour Maytag Dairy Farms in Newton, Iowa, which is famous for its on-farm cheese production.
“That got my mind my thinking,” Johnson said.
More thinking was done on a whirlwind spring break tour of 14 different on-farm creameries across the Upper Midwest.
“One of my main takeaways from that was seeing how happy the creamery customers were with the product and how happy the creamery owners were with what they were doing,” he said. “The business model transforms the producers from price takers to price makers, all while ensuring price stability for customers.”
Through the course of his post-college employment, Johnson was able to visit more than two dozen food processing plants where he saw different setups and observed different management styles.
“It all seemed to be building toward something,” Johnson said.
That “something” ended up being his return to the farm.
Back to the farm
“I came back to the farm in January 2023,” he said. “By that April, plans started to be laid for the creamery.”
Johnson assembled a team of industry experts to help him plan his new venture — not only the creamery’s physical space, but also the end products.
“There are literally 40,000 things you can make out of milk,” he said. “After weighing a desire for simplicity and efficiency and studying my target market, we were able to settle on our three core products.”
One is creamline whole milk.
“This is whole, non-homogenized milk, so the cream stays on top,” he said. “You just shake it up and enjoy the rich flavor.”
Not only is the milk whole and non-homogenized, Johnson said, but it is also A2A2 milk, sourced from Johnson’s grassfed cows that naturally produce only the A2 beta-casin protein.
“It’s a genetic quality we selectively breed for,” Johnson said, adding A2A2 milk is an easier-to-digest protein preferred by people who may be sensitive to dairy. “It’s a niche market we are uniquely positioned to enter.”
The milk will be available in half-gallon and 12-ounce containers. Johnson expects to produce between 200 and 300 half-gallons of milk per week.
The milk not bottled and sold will be used to produce cheese curds. The curds not sold as curds will be pressed into cheddar cheese.
All three products — along with SDSU ice cream — will be sold in the creamery’s retail space, which features a large viewing window into the interior of the creamery.
“Some people don’t know where their food comes from,” Johnson said. “Here, they’ll be able to see exactly where it comes from, from the cows in the pasture as they drive up to our processing area as they buy their items.”
Full circle
It’s been a long journey, Johnson said — from planning in April 2023 to site work getting under way last fall to completion of the creamery facility just recently.
“A lot of people have been reaching out to us to check on our progress and let us know how excited they are to be able to come onsite and purchase farm-fresh dairy products,” Johnson said. “It’s been really enjoyable to hear of the high level of interest out there and I’m looking forward to being able to help meet this demand.”
In that respect, not a lot has changed since the founding of the original Amo Creamery back in 1895.
“Back then, a group of about 50 farmers got together to start the creamery to meet a local demand,” Johnson said. “They wanted to get into the business, so they built a creamery. Today, we want to stay in the business, so we’re doing the same. History repeats itself, and we’ve come full circle.”
Ethan Johnson is about to put a new twist on an old business.
Johnson plans to open Amo Creamery on his family’s rural Heron Lake farm in the near future. The creamery will produce and sell creamline whole milk, cheese curds and cheddar cheese on the very same farm where the cows are milked.
For Johnson, it’s a way to keep the family business and way of life he loves viable, all while helping to meet a growing demand for fresh, locally produced, high-protein dairy products.
Milk in the blood
Johnson has milk in his blood.
His great-grandfather was the first in the family to settle in Minnesota, eventually owning and operating a farm in Jackson County’s Kimball Township. Johnson’s grandfather seeded the purchase of his own farm near Heron Lake first by selling his cigarette and chocolate rations to fellow soldiers while in the service, then by baling and selling hay.
“By 1969, he had bought this farm, and, from the beginning, they always had some cows,” Johnson said. “They started milking about 20, then expanded to 40.”
By then, the historic Amo Creamery — which was located a few miles from the farm — was out of business, Johnson said, so the milk was shipped first to Storden and later to Mt. Lake.
Johnson’s father stayed in the dairy business and Johnson and his three siblings grew up as “dairy kids.”
“I was always known as the ‘dairy kid,’” he said. “I’ve always enjoyed being in the industry.”
Johnson’s three older siblings all studied dairy science in college and pursued employment in the dairy production industry. Johnson himself decided to head in a slightly different direction, even in light of changes in the industry.
“When I was in high school, it was clear the dairy industry was changing and many small dairies were finding it more and more difficult to exist,” he said. “Still, I knew I wanted to stay involved in the industry.”
Johnson studied dairy manufacturing at South Dakota State University in Brookings. While in college, he worked at the SDSU Dairy Bar, helping to manufacture and market the university’s famous ice cream.
“The dairy manufacturing program at SDSU is a fantastic program with a 100 percent job placement rate,” he said. “I really enjoyed my time there.”
In the course of his studies, Johnson got the chance to tour Maytag Dairy Farms in Newton, Iowa, which is famous for its on-farm cheese production.
“That got my mind my thinking,” Johnson said.
More thinking was done on a whirlwind spring break tour of 14 different on-farm creameries across the Upper Midwest.
“One of my main takeaways from that was seeing how happy the creamery customers were with the product and how happy the creamery owners were with what they were doing,” he said. “The business model transforms the producers from price takers to price makers, all while ensuring price stability for customers.”
Through the course of his post-college employment, Johnson was able to visit more than two dozen food processing plants where he saw different setups and observed different management styles.
“It all seemed to be building toward something,” Johnson said.
That “something” ended up being his return to the farm.
Back to the farm
“I came back to the farm in January 2023,” he said. “By that April, plans started to be laid for the creamery.”
Johnson assembled a team of industry experts to help him plan his new venture — not only the creamery’s physical space, but also the end products.
“There are literally 40,000 things you can make out of milk,” he said. “After weighing a desire for simplicity and efficiency and studying my target market, we were able to settle on our three core products.”
One is creamline whole milk.
“This is whole, non-homogenized milk, so the cream stays on top,” he said. “You just shake it up and enjoy the rich flavor.”
Not only is the milk whole and non-homogenized, Johnson said, but it is also A2A2 milk, sourced from Johnson’s grassfed cows that naturally produce only the A2 beta-casin protein.
“It’s a genetic quality we selectively breed for,” Johnson said, adding A2A2 milk is an easier-to-digest protein preferred by people who may be sensitive to dairy. “It’s a niche market we are uniquely positioned to enter.”
The milk will be available in half-gallon and 12-ounce containers. Johnson expects to produce between 200 and 300 half-gallons of milk per week.
The milk not bottled and sold will be used to produce cheese curds. The curds not sold as curds will be pressed into cheddar cheese.
All three products — along with SDSU ice cream — will be sold in the creamery’s retail space, which features a large viewing window into the interior of the creamery.
“Some people don’t know where their food comes from,” Johnson said. “Here, they’ll be able to see exactly where it comes from, from the cows in the pasture as they drive up to our processing area as they buy their items.”
Full circle
It’s been a long journey, Johnson said — from planning in April 2023 to site work getting under way last fall to completion of the creamery facility just recently.
“A lot of people have been reaching out to us to check on our progress and let us know how excited they are to be able to come onsite and purchase farm-fresh dairy products,” Johnson said. “It’s been really enjoyable to hear of the high level of interest out there and I’m looking forward to being able to help meet this demand.”
In that respect, not a lot has changed since the founding of the original Amo Creamery back in 1895.
“Back then, a group of about 50 farmers got together to start the creamery to meet a local demand,” Johnson said. “They wanted to get into the business, so they built a creamery. Today, we want to stay in the business, so we’re doing the same. History repeats itself, and we’ve come full circle.”
