Lunch With Pete – It’s Kind of a Big Deal

Apr 14, 2022 (Westby, WI)

“Lunch with Pete” might not sound like a big deal, but at Westby Cooperative Creamery it is. Pete Kondrup is the Westby Creamery’s general manager who oversees every department – from production to sales. He reports to the board of directors as well as – to an extent – the cooperative’s 125 employees.

Each year a series of lunches are set aside for “lunch with Pete.” This gives all employees who have been with the Cooperative a year or more the chance to have a direct conversation with the general manager. These lunches recently took place, during which time Pete provided a general update and listened to employee ideas and thoughts.

Lunch begins with casual conversation, mostly about the Packers, and naturally parlays into chat about fitness and trying to eat well… while eating pizza. Then Kondrup shares updates with the group about anything from equipment investments to long-term goals, such as investing in robotics to improve the work experience.

This year, Kondrup made special note of the Creamery’s cottage cheese production over the last few months. “We had another record-breaking month in cottage cheese production with 1.35 million pounds produced in March,” Kondrup said. “At this rate, we will have produced the most cottage cheese we ever have in one year.”

Kondrup was especially excited for this year’s lunches as it had been put on hold during the pandemic. “It gives me a chance to meet and hear from employees in a relaxed environment,” Kondrup said.

He also likes to take this time to thank the team for all their hard work – many of which have been working at Westby Creamery for over 10 years. In doing so, some teammates were inspired to share stories about their time there. Paul Lambert, one of Westby’s talented cottage cheesemakers, said he hopes to eventually break the Creamery’s record of 44 years worked.

To learn more about the collaborative work environment at Westby Cooperative Creamery, visit Careers.