Roberts Dairy History

Times Have Changed, but Our Freshness Remains

Our proud history began in 1906 near Lincoln, Nebraska, when J.R. Roberts first began home delivery of milk produced by his herd of 60 cows. During these early years, J.R. quickly built his reputation by delivering fresh, high-quality dairy products to doorsteps all over town. Customers knew him not only as their friendly neighbor, but as the milkman they could count on for great-tasting dairy products.

What began as a herd of cows and old milkhouse factory soon grew into a plant in downtown Lincoln. Later, J.R.’s operation became an incorporated company and moved to a new plant at 16th and N Streets. At the time, Roberts was the only dairy that sold pasteurized milk to the community.

As the dairy industry grew and delivery areas became larger, J.R. hired additional milkmen to deliver to Roberts’ ever-increasing customer base two or three times per week. Around 1910, horse-drawn wagons were used to expedite delivery of “fresh from the farm taste” dairy products to doorsteps all over town.

The most famous of the delivery horses was named Old Tom. Old Tom traveled about 75,000 miles during his 20 years of service and helped deliver nearly three million bottles of Roberts’ milk. Old Tom died on November 28, 1930 at the age of 22 after nearly 20 years of milk delivery.

The years from 1918 to 1929 were a period of great expansion for Roberts Dairy. A branch was opened in Sioux City, Iowa, in 1918. Then in 1922, Roberts expanded to Omaha, Nebraska. Business grew rapidly in Omaha with as many as 20 new customers per route per day.

During the 1920s and 30s, demand for Roberts Dairy products became so great that milk was purchased from area dairy farmers. These farmers provided hundreds of five-gallon cans of milk to Roberts every day, most likely through automobile travel which became a faster delivery alternative in the late 1920s. While newly invented trucks were utilized for shipment to far-reaching areas to maintain freshness, Roberts still used horse-drawn wagons for delivery as late as 1929.

In 1925, Roberts moved to its present location at 20th and N Streets in Lincoln.

As the demand for fresh, great-tasting dairy products continued to grow during the 1940s, so did the nations’ anxiety over World War II. Certain foods were made scarce by the war and rationing became part of everyday life. Customers were issued war ration books that allowed them to purchase designated amounts of Roberts’ products only during times set by the government. As the War came to an end, so did the need for rationing.

During the 1950s, Roberts introduced two unique products to the market: 2% milk enhanced with vitamin C and a patented “Ready Egg” product—one of the first “instant” products available.

The 1960s heralded tremendous growth for Roberts Dairy with the purchase of:

• Skyline Dairy in Lincoln, Nebraska
• Sterns Dairy in Denver, Colorado
• Robinson Dairy in Denver, Colorado
• Arvada-Gibson in Denver, Colorado
• Royal Dairy in Omaha, Nebraska
• Roberts Perfection Foods in Orlando, Florida

Fairacres Foods in Grand Island was purchased in 1971, the same year Roberts Perfection Foods was sold.

In 1972, American Beef purchased the stock of J. Gordon Roberts, and in 1975 when American Beef filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy, Cal Fisher and Dick Westin purchased Roberts’ assets. The Roberts plant in Denver, Colorado, was then sold to the Robinson brothers.

In 1973, Roberts Dairy became the majority stockholder of Platte Valley Foods—makers of the popular french-fried onion rings.

In 1974, Plasti-Cyc, a manufacturing operation that recycles plastic gallon milk jugs and similar containers into reusable plastic material, became a wholly owned subsidiary of Roberts.

The 80s was a dynamic decade for Roberts Dairy. In January of 1980, Roberts Dairy was sold to Mid-America Dairymen who formed a joint venture with Prairie Farms Dairy. Both were cooperatives owned by local Midwest dairy farmers. Prairie Farms Dairy was the management partner. A fluid milk plant formerly owned by Prairie Farms Dairy in Des Moines and a plant owned by Mid-America Dairymen in Iowa City eventually became part of the Roberts Company.

In 1989, Roberts acquired the Fairmont-Zarda milk and ice cream plants in Kansas City.

Two years later, Roberts was given the responsibility of managing the Mid-America-owned Gillette ice cream and fluid milk plant in Norfolk, Nebraska.

In 1994, the production of Fairmont-Zarda ice cream was moved to the Gillette plant in Norfolk. That same year, fluid production at the Gillette plant was sold to Roberts Dairy and added to Roberts’ Omaha plant.

In May of 1996, Mid-America Dairymen sold the Gillette ice cream plant in Norfolk, Nebraska, to joint-venture partners Hiland Dairy of Springfield, Missouri, and Roberts Dairy of Omaha, Nebraska. The Hiland-Roberts Ice Cream Company was formed.

1998 was a year of important “firsts” for Roberts Dairy. The year marked the first time that Roberts’ products were sold in all of the markets in its six-state region. Roberts’ eight-ounce Fat Free Yogurts with aspartame (Equal^®) were also introduced this same year. A year later, the first 16-ounce To Go Drinks would hit the market.

The new decade saw a new president and general manager for Roberts Dairy. Incumbent President Ron Richardson retired and Jeff Powell was named president and general manager in 2000.

In 2002, Roberts Dairy initiated its “Quality Brigade” and “Roberts Rules” campaigns aimed at encouraging milk consumption by children. Efforts touted the nutritional value of milk over soda in establishing and maintaining good health.

Roberts Dairy received national recognition in 2003 when it won Quality Awards for its milk and culture products.

Six years after the introduction of aspartame-sweetened yogurts, Roberts Dairy introduced six-ounce, Splenda^®-sweetened yogurts in 2004.

As part of Robert Dairy’s 100th Anniversary marketing efforts, a series of nostalgic television commercials was filmed in Woodbine, Iowa, in the summer of 2005. A retired horse-drawn carriage was dusted off, shipped and readied to help create an “old-fashioned” look for the commercials. The production generated such excitement that the residents of the town are hailing January 25, 2006 as “Roberts Dairy Day” and are holding a community-wide celebration.

After an exciting summer, Roberts Dairy was named 2005 Vendor of the Year by the Iowa Grocer’s Association. Roberts received the honor for its unwavering support of the Association’s various sponsorship programs and events that help make communities better places to live.

Currently, Roberts Dairy operates three production plants and 10 distribution centers in Nebraska, Iowa, Kansas and Missouri and manages the joint-venture Hiland-Roberts ice cream plant in Norfolk, Nebraska.

Roberts now serves a region that includes Nebraska, Iowa, Missouri, Kansas and parts of Colorado, Illinois and South Dakota. Headquartered in Omaha, Roberts Dairy currently employs more than 700 individuals and generates annual sales of more than $250 million with its vast selection of dairy foods and beverages. Roberts’ plants operate around the clock, 365 days a year to ensure freshness.