US own-label cheese maker Hilmar Cheese Co. has confirmed its founder and CEO John Jeter is retiring after 31 years at the helm.

Jeter, who set up the company in 1984, told The Turlock Journal "it felt like time" for him to step down.

He will be replaced by COO David Ahlem, the son of Chuck Ahlem, who was one of the founding farmers who set up the business and hired Jeter 30 years ago. Hilmar Cheese told just-food it had no plans at present to fill the COO role.

Hilmar Cheese processes more than 21 million pounds of milk daily from 230 dairies and produces over 2.4 million pounds of cheese, supplying food manufacturers and retailers. It serves customers in more than 50 countries from its two sites in Hilmar in California and in Dalhart in Texas.

Last year, Hilmar announced plans to increase cheese capacity at its Dalhart site. The new expansion will increase production capacity by 20% when completed next year.

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