In 1952, cans of milk were photographed moving through the modern Tillamook Cheese Factory, the starting point of converting milk to cheese. The number on each can indicated the owner. By 1960, Tillamook Grade A dairy farmers – who supplied drinking milk – were eyeing the bulk tanks coming into use in the Willamette Valley. The tanks were easy to use and sanitary, and a tanker truck emptied them and hauled the milk to the factory, freeing the farmer to get started on the rest of his day’s work.
Still, it would be a break from tradition, and it would require a tanker and trucker at a time when not enough Grade A farms had installed the expensive bulk tank nor built its storage building. During a Grade A Shippers Association board discussion, one member suggested, “Use the tank for a cooler and then can off the milk for hauling purposes. This could be done until enough shippers were converted for a tanker run to be feasible.” (Feb. 8, 1960, Grade A Shippers Association minutes)
In 1968, the state’s new requirement for standardized storage temperatures meant every farmer had to convert to bulk tanks, whether a cheese milk producer or a Grade A milk producer. The state also required all milk to meet Grade A standards, resulting in no distinction between drinking milk and cheese milk.
(Photo credit: Richards Studio, Tacoma Public Library, D67477-28)
