Fire Damage at Wisconsin’s Largest Dairy Farm Costly

A fire has damaged Wisconsin’s largest dairy farm.

WLUK-TV reports the fire tore through one of the barns at Rosendale Dairy near the Fond du Lac-Winnebago County line around 2:20 p.m. on Oct. 16.

Bill Harke is a spokesman for Milk Source LLC, which owns Rosendale Dairy and several other area dairy farms. He says the fire started when a piece of farm equipment sparked and spread to grain in the barn.

Harke says the fire’s damage includes an estimated $500,000 in feed and the commodity shed, which has an estimated value between $500,000 and $1 million.

Rosendale Dairy has 8,400 cows and produces 78,000 gallons daily. Harke says the fire isn’t expected to interfere with the usual workload.

At least seven fire departments helped battle the blaze.

Latest Comments

• October 19, 2012 at 8:51 am

  reality bites says:

  Do you mean to tell me that cheese comes from substandard dairies? If THAT's the reality, then it really bites. And while I work in the Financial District, my house is in a sm... read more
• October 18, 2012 at 4:37 pm

  sandman says:

  Reality must be a city slicker as most dairy farms like this produce milk to drink. Cheese comes from the farms that are not Grade A.
• October 18, 2012 at 1:44 pm

  reality bites says:

  Cut the cheese....production.