...shines in planning role.

Heather Ernst has a special knack for keeping things organized. It’s therefore only appropriate that one would need a checklist to track her advancement through Agropur’s Weyauwega, Wis. facility.

Ernst, who has been with the company for 11 years, began in the front office as a production clerk. She moved on to become shipping clerk for whey and later for the plant’s award-winning cheese. From there, Ernst worked as the maintenance inventory clerk before taking on her latest challenge as maintenance planner. It’s a path she couldn’t have envisioned.

“I never thought I’d be in the maintenance department,” she said with a laugh, “Some days are easier than others. I never worked in the plant, so I didn’t know all of the mechanical things behind the scenes. I’ve gotten some help and I’m learning.”

As Agropur commemorates its 85th anniversary, we also celebrate our 7 350 dedicated employees and 3 000 members and their rich contributions toward the cooperative’s continued success. Each day, they bring commitment, skill and effort to all Agropur’s facilities across Canada and the United States.

In her role, Ernst helps to ensure Weyauwega’s machinery remains well maintained and without significant impact to the production schedule. The maintenance planner role is vital toward plant productivity. It involves anticipating and eliminating potential delays through proper planning and coordination.

Ernst creates work orders and closes them when the jobs are complete. She keeps track of all the monthly tasks as well as the surprises that surface in between.

Plant Manager Melissa Miller said Ernst’s value to the plant goes far beyond her skill, knowledge and diligence. She’s an excellent teammate who lives out Agropur’s core values.

“Heather embodies a rare combination of traits that make her not just a great co-worker but someone it’s hard to not enjoy spending time with,” Miller said. “She’s motivated, highly capable, empathetic, honest, sees a project through to the end and down to the detail, and laughs easily.”

Ernst arrived at Agropur in a desire to return to her roots. A Wisconsin native, Ernst was living and working for another company in Iowa when she decided it was time to head home. There are plenty of reasons why she’s stayed with the company.

“My bosses have treated me great, they’ve been flexible and everyone is easy to work with,” she said.

That flexibility has become far more important for Ernst in recent years as a mom to a 3-year-old child. Outside of work, she enjoys boating, fishing and other outdoor pursuits alongside friends and family.

Weyauwega is a prime location for outdoor fun, and it’s less than an hour from where Ernst grew up. She’s fortunate to have found a proud and welcoming workplace to earn her living while back in the comfort of east-central Wisconsin.

“We have a good crew here and everyone gets along,” Ernst said.

Agropur’s plant in Weyauwega leads the United States in feta cheese production and is well known for its aged cheddar. About 225 employees work in the plant, which processes about 3 million pounds of milk every day.

The team in Weyauwega takes incredible pride in their work, and it’s well demonstrated in the exceptional quality of their products. Weyauwega’s cheddar and feta each took three medals at the 2023 US Championship Cheese Contest. One of Weyauwega’s cheddars was named to the top 20 among 2,249 cheeses judged in the competition.