Westby Creamery Leadership Changing
May 30, 2023 (Westby, WI)
After 19 years at the helm, Westby Cooperative Creamery General Manager Pete Kondrup will step aside in early June and make way for new General Manager JD Greenwalt. Kondrup is retiring following a highly regarded career in dairy, which began at age 16.
His family owned and operated a creamery in central Illinois that mainly produced baby Swiss cheeses. He started in their manufacturing facility and eventually made his way up to plant manager.
From there, Kondrup spent five years in Stevensville, Texas with AMPI as plant superintendent. Then he moved on to Tropical Cheese Industries as plant manager in New Jersey for nine years before starting his position in Westby.
Since 2004, and under his guidance, the Creamery has added yogurt production; an organic line of products; continuously reached new production records; opened a new distribution center and cheese store to meet growing customer demand; and remained fully operational through the COVID pandemic.
Kondrup received a well-deserved standing ovation from the Creamery’s farmer-owners after announcing his plans to retire at the 2023 Annual Meeting.
“I came into the Creamery when it was on the brink of shutting down. It’s incredibly rewarding to see how far we’ve come,” Kondrup said. “It’s all thanks to the support of our community and our hard-working farms and employees. They’re definitely what I’ll miss most.”
In his retirement, Kondrup looks forward to spending more time with his 10 grandkids and family. He is also an avid golfer and seasoned runner who likes to participate in half marathons all around the U.S. A few of his favorites have been in Las Vegas, Nev.; Columbus, Ohio; and Grand Island, Minn.
Well wishes can be sent to pkondrup@westbycreamery.com.
New General Manager JD Greenwalt has been working alongside Kondrup since the end of April and is excited to support the Creamery’s mission.
“I know how much the Creamery means to this community – it’s really what drew me in,” Greenwalt said. “Growing up on a small farmstead myself, I know the importance of keeping our local farms around. I am excited to start this journey with Westby… to keep making high-quality dairy products and help keep our farms profitable for generations to come.”
Westby Creamery’s new General Manager JD Greenwalt.
Greenwalt grew up on a farmstead in the small town of Walcott, Iowa and received his bachelor’s degree from the University of Iowa. He has spent most of his career working in various food manufacturing facilities, from General Mills to other big-name brands such as PepsiCo and Coco-Cola. His work has taken him all over the U.S., including Kraft Food in Idaho, HP Hood in Washington D.C. and Slim Fast in Arizona.
Greenwalt moved to the driftless area with his high school sweetheart and wife, Shelley. Together they have three adult sons, Dakota, Austin and Cameron, that remain in the Midwest. Westby, Wis. puts Greenwalt smack dab in the middle of their family for easy visiting.
In his free time, he enjoys spending time with his family or doing some sort of outdoor activity whether it be hiking, golfing, soccer or just a nice stroll. The Greenwalt family is also big on board games. So much so that they own over 350 different games! Their favorite ones require intense strategy – like Settlers of Catan or Risk – and they often get pretty competitive.
Westby Cooperative Creamery proudly congratulates Kondrup on his retirement and looks forward to many years of success with Greenwalt.
