All Star Dairy Association Inc. (ASDA) held its 47th annual convention February 9 to 13 at the Desert Springs Marriott in Pal Desert, Calif. President Larry Kurz, of Readington Farms in Whitehouse, N.J., and Jeff Sterne, executive director of Lexington, Ky.-based ASDA, presided over a record attendance of 282 people, including 51 dairy/water/custom-mold members representing 65 plants.

The convention featured a panel that included representatives from Costco, Sysco and School Food Service. Other subjects covered were lowering health insurance costs, hiring practices, distribution savings, wastewater treatment and current regulation changes.

Introduced at the gathering were newly elected board members Gale Hackman, Central Dairy; Roger Gifford, Gifford’s Ice Cream; Robin Schroeder, Schroeder Milk Co.; and Dub Garlington, Plains Dairy.

The convention also was the venue for recognizing ASDA-member processors with the following awards:

Dairy of the Year Award — Foster Farms Dairy, Modesto, Calif.

Purchasing Award (large company) — Hunter Farms Dairy, High Point, N.C.

Purchasing Award (small company) — Gifford’s Ice Cream, Skowhegan, Maine.

Quality Assurance Awards: Best Fluid Plant — Turner Dairy, Pittsburgh; Best Cultured Plant — Louis Trauth Dairy, Newport, Ky.; Best Ice Cream Plant — Southwest Foods, Tyler, Texas.

Doc Lawrence Award (Most Improved Plant) — Dairy Maid Dairy, Frederick, Md.

Thoroughbred Award (Supplier of the Year) — BP Solvay, Houston, Texas.

The $5,000 John D. Utterback Annual College Scholarship was awarded evenly to member employees or dependents to be used toward a Food & Science degree.

Innovation, technology and management are the three watchwords for the International Dairy Foods Association’s (IDFA) Plant Operations Conference slated for April 26 and 27 in Chicago. This year’s program will cover a spectrum of topics crucial to dairy plant operators including the latest technology developments in filtration, production and product packaging and tracking. In addition, program participants will receive briefings on important management issues such as worker safety, diversity in the workplace and the new federal regulations on recordkeeping.  m  “The Plant Operations Conference successfully delivers its ambitious agenda, which looks at the innovative technologies that can help a dairy plant operate more efficiently, as well as how to manage a facility’s invaluable human capital,” says Courtney Waters, IDFA senior manager of educational services. “In addition, attendees will receive a thorough update on the latest regulatory challenges for plant operators.”  m  Among the highlights of the conference will be the announcement of the winners of the second-annual IDFA Dairy Industry Safety Awards, which honor firms for outstanding worker safety performance. This year’s program has been expanded to include both processing facilities and trucking operations in the dairy industry.