Aseptic Processing Unlocks Sustainable Benefits at Suntado Dairy Facility

What You Will Learn in This Story:

• Why aseptic milk production creates the potential for international sales.
• How aseptic processing can cut the cost of cold storage and refrigeration.
• Why contract manufacturers need to be fully certified before producing any food or beverage items.

Traditional high-temperature, short time (HTST) milk production has often been limited by its relatively short expiration date—just a few weeks—and the need to be refrigerated throughout the entirety of the cold foods supply chain. That short shelf life keeps HTST milk produced in the U.S. from making its way to regional areas like Mexico and South America, and far-off markets like China and Taiwan, for example.

Aseptic dairy processing and packaging changed that scenario, with milk produced through ultra-high temperatures (UHT) and filled into sterile, oxygen-free aseptic packaging. That milk has a shelf-life of up to 12 months, which means those far-away markets are now accessible for U.S. dairy manufacturers, since refrigeration is not required once the milk is sealed in aseptic containers. This opens the door to distribution in emerging economies as well, where refrigeration may be inconsistent or scarce.

Another variation with a shorter shelf life—about 80 to 100 days—is extended shelf life (ESL) processing and packaging. ESL milk lasts much longer than HTST milk but requires end-to-end refrigeration throughout its lifespan.

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Both aseptic and ESL milk are produced at the new Suntado plant in Burley, Idaho, located in the dairy-rich Magic Valley region of the state. Suntado is a new, vertically integrated processor specializing in contract manufacturing of aseptic and ESL organic and conventional milk products, along with plant-based beverages, with options for value-added blending of flavors, and lactose-free and vitamin dosing for functional drinks.

Suntado Plant Manager Russ Lucas stands next to a milk tanker truck that only needed to travel 20 miles from farm to factory for processing. This vertically integrated business model ensures fresher product and a lower carbon footprint for transportation.Michael Costa

The name Suntado comes from its two founders, Dirk Reitsma, owner and manager of Sunrise Organic Dairy, and Jesus Hurtado, owner of Hurtado Dairy. Sunrise + Hurtado = Suntado. Both farms are approximately 20 miles from the Suntado facility. Reitsma’s farm has 5,500 cows and can produce 400,000 lbs of organic milk daily. Hurtado oversees 28,000 cows, and can produce 2 million lbs of conventional milk daily.

Combined, this vertically integrated business model not only supplies Suntado with a steady stream of fresh milk—which can be processed and packaged the same day—but the short distance to travel from farm to factory helps keep Suntado’s carbon footprint low.

“Before Suntado, Dirk and Jesus would ship their milk to customers in other states, and in some instances, as far away as the East Coast,” says Tory Nichols, office of the CEO, business development at Suntado. “Now they’re just driving it 20 miles to their own facility, so there’s a strong sustainability point just around the transportation of milk from the dairies to the plant.”

Eco-friendly initiatives and efficiencies throughout Suntado’s plant help position it as a potential leader in the marketplace as the company ramps up its first year of business. Here, we’ll take a detailed look inside the greenfield facility, which was designed and built by Big-D Construction and E.A. Bonelli + Associates.

Aseptic advantages

Suntado currently has two processing lines and six fillers: four aseptic and one ESL from Tetra Pak, and one ESL from Pactiv Evergreen. The 190,000-sq-ft plant was built with extra space to house up to six processors and 18 filling lines operating in the facility—three times what is currently in place now. At full capacity currently, Suntado can produce more than 33 million gallons a year, and after expansion, about 100 million gallons annually.

Suntado currently has six fillers—four aseptic and two ESL—and finished cartons are conveyed to the left into the end-of-line space on the other side of the wall.Tetra Pak

The process starts when milk is trucked in by tanker to a receiving area. Milk is stored in stainless-steel silos until it’s ready for separation, standardization, or processing. Once milk is processed through UHT it’s stored in aseptic surge tanks and can be routed to the aseptic filling lines where cartons are filled and sealed, then conveyed to Robopac case packers and TopTier palletizers for eventual distribution.

“There’s a substantial amount of effort that goes into making a sterile product,” says Russ Lucas, Suntado’s plant manager. “You need the boilers going, and then the chillers need to be operating as well. You turn the temperature up to the 285-degree range [for UHT processing] then you need to cool it back down to 80 degrees. Or, if the milk is going out to ESL, then down to 36 degrees. So, there’s a lot of change in temperature and a lot of movement of product around.”

As noted earlier, aseptic containers give Suntado a chance to manufacture milk and other beverages for customers around the world because it doesn’t need to be refrigerated until the container is opened. This means Suntado can schedule longer continuous production runs with less waste in the end.Milk is stored in stainless-steel silos until it’s ready for separation, standardization, or processing. Once milk is processed through UHT it’s stored in aseptic surge tanks and can be routed to aseptic filling lines.Michael Costa

“I’m not going to be squeezed into a 25- or 30-day window to get product out the door before it goes past its best-by date,” says Lucas. “[Aseptic] gives us a certain amount of flexibility, and our plan is to get as close as we can to 24-hour [production] runs. Our strategy is to plan ahead to manage our product mix so that we don’t have multiple changeovers and force extra CIPs (clean-in-place) and the associated downtime.”

Mat Rutz, VP of contract manufacturing for Tetra Pak in the U.S. and Canada, adds, “Aseptic lines run faster than the alternative packaging technologies, and you can schedule your production around to get the maximum benefit out of the technology,” he says. “In principle, because the [aseptic] product will last longer as opposed to a traditional dairy environment—where the milk is going to spoil in a few weeks so you have to build that into your scheduling on a weekly basis—you can lengthen your runs and reduce your CIPs, which means you eventually reduce the amount of product down the drain.”

Resource savings

Another advantage to aseptic processing is less energy usage over time in the form of refrigeration. Because aseptic milk is shelf stable for up to a year, the finished product doesn’t need to be put into a cooler and stored. ESL products need to stay chilled, but overall, “the cold storage areas here are substantially smaller than the ambient,” notes Lucas. “That’s less square footage just draining money to keep our storage areas cold.” Lucas adds that Suntado has an offsite warehouse under construction that has 8,000 additional pallet spaces in an ambient environment for extra aseptic storage capacity.

Because aseptic milk doesn’t require refrigeration after being sealed in containers, Suntado uses onsite ambient storage like this for inventory—saving energy costs as a result.Michael Costa

Suntado also utilizes an onsite water filtration system that treats wastewater before releasing it back into the city’s system. “We have a DAF (dissolved air flotation) unit out on the northeast corner of our property that removes the solids from our wastewater,” Lucas explains. “The effluent out of the plant gets cleaned up and has a very limited impact on the city’s wastewater system once it goes out after we treat it here.”

Skilled workforce

Suntado employs a highly skilled workforce, many of whom have extensive experience in dairy processing due to the high number of dairies in Idaho. Nichols estimates about 25% of the core staff also have specialized experience in aseptic processing, and the company has been attracting talent with the promise of a modern, efficient workplace.

After being filled, aseptic and ESL containers are conveyed into this automated end-of-line space where they are packed into cases and palletized before shipping.Michael Costa

The company currently employs approximately 70 people, and will expand to 120 as Suntado grows its operation. One of the perks for workers is a 2-2-3 work schedule, where employees work two day shifts in a row, followed by two days off, and then back on for three more days of work.

“It’s nice to be the new kid on the block,” Lucas says. “We have some great talent here, but we’re also having to teach and train that aseptic is different than what some of them may be used to in traditional dairy plants. There’s more discipline required, and extra care for sanitation as well as packaging.”

Progressive packaging

Speaking of packaging, Suntado utilizes roll-fed packaging, which allows for more cartons per pallet to be shipped to the plant compared to traditional blank-fed packaging. This not only reduces the number of trucks needed for transportation—lowering Suntado’s carbon footprint—but also enhances storage efficiency.Suntado uses roll-fed packaging, which contains more unfinished cartons per pallet than blank-fed packaging, reducing the number of trucks needed to deliver packaging to the plant.Michael Costa

“Blank-fed packaging would be somewhere around 24,000 packs per pallet,” notes Rutz. “Roll-fed material would be upwards to 36,000 packs per pallet. So Suntado is bringing in more unfinished packs per pallet than the alternative, which means they’re essentially pulling trucks off the road in order to deliver the same amount of material for the business needs of Suntado.”

Food safety certifications

Nichols says if a food or beverage brand self-manufactures, that company can make its products while it goes through the certification process for food quality, food safety, kosher, halal, and other requirements, depending on what’s being produced. However, a contract manufacturer like Suntado has a stricter path when it comes to being certified and must have all of their certifications in place before any production can begin.

“It’s different when you’re a co-packer because when you’re making someone else’s brand, you have to start certified. Retailers and grocers are trusting that the plant is certified, and that we will uphold the reputation of our customers,” Nichols says. “Establishing those certifications can be a challenge as a co-packer, but it’s something we have overcome. Getting all those initial certifications was a big deal.”

Construction challenges

Like several other food and beverage facilities built since the pandemic, Suntado experienced many of the prevalent supply chain headaches in today’s design/build landscape, but conquered them to open the plant in less than two years from the start of construction.

“We needed to have weekly calls with Big-D Construction about long lead times for things like 60,000-gallon tanks, electrical gear, boilers, and stainless-steel beams,” remembers Nichols. “We were very fortunate that a large brand was building several warehouses and stopped for a while, so we were able to pick up their steel.”

Global marketplace

Seth Teply, president and CEO of Tetra Pak U.S. and Canada, says the vertically integrated Suntado and its focus on producing aseptic and ESL beverages can help address several nutrition issues impacting populations around the world.

“Today, there are 700 million people that are food insecure, meaning they don’t have access to safe and nutritious food. So, the U.S. dairy industry has a huge role to play in helping to feed the world,” he says. “We believe that shelf-stable and ESL technologies can play a key role in this by helping to reduce food waste globally. About 30% of all food produced is wasted, and in the U.S. there are studies that place it as high as 40%. So, shelf-stable and ESL production of liquid dairy products and other beverages like what Suntado is doing here can be a leading edge to help combat food insecurity in a sustainable way."

From an economic standpoint, Suntado has already attracted the attention of those countries and regions mentioned at the top of this story, using aseptic processing to help create a truly global customer base for its products.

“We’ve hosted trade organizations from Mexico, Taiwan, China and other parts of Asia, and we are in talks with multiple international customers,” says Nichols. “They’re very interested in having USDA Grade A milk. When you think of countries like Singapore or Taiwan, where many items are expensive, being able to export into those markets from a plant like ours—whether it’s UHT or ESL—is economically viable. For example, a quart container of heavy whipping cream in the U.S. is around $6. In Singapore, you can get $18 for it. So, it makes a lot of sense to export to those markets, and if we build those international relationships it’s going to help Suntado, and the U.S. dairy industry too.”