TILLAMOOK, Ore.-The Tillamook County Creamery Association will double the cheese production capacity at Columbia River Processing Inc., TCCA's Boardman, Ore., facility. Tillamook said recently that it examined expansion alternatives in Tillamook and Boardman, and chose Boardman as least costly.

"Our market is continuing to grow and so are our customers in the retail grocery business," said Jim McMullen, president and CEO of TCCA. "Our customers expect us to grow with them in order to meet their needs. Expanding TCCA's cheesemaking capabilities insures that we can keep up with our customers' growing demands. It will also secure the future of the Tillamook brand."

Columbia River Processing, Inc., is TCCA's satellite cheese plant located in the eastern part of the state. It was dedicated in September 2001. Its production capacity doubled TCCA's cheesemaking capabilities. The planned expansion will effectively increase processing capacity by 35%.