WAYNESBORO, Ga. () – Southern Swiss Dairy has been in Waynesboro for years, and they’ve been offering the community a lot more than just milk.
In this installment of Your Hometown Roadtrip, Brandon Dawson and his crew head to Southern Swiss Dairy, LLC located in Waynesboro to chat with co-owner Jimmy Franks about their operations.
What is Southern Swiss Dairy all about?
“Southern Swiss Dairy is a family-operated local farm,” he explained. “We produce a variety of dairy products, including whole milk, 2 percent, chocolate milk, skim, buttermilk, heavy cream, ice cream, and butter, all from milk we get from our own cows.”
How did Southern Swiss Dairy begin?
“Our involvement in dairy farming dates back to the 1980s. However, during the economic downturn of 2008-2009, milk prices plummeted, making it unsustainable unless you were operating on a massive scale, milking thousands of cows. Faced with this challenge, we consulted with our family, and since our children were still young, we had to decide whether to exit the business or try a new path. We chose to establish a processing plant, and since then, there’s been no turning back. Initially, we catered to our local community, but we’ve since expanded to Savannah, Atlanta, and Macon, and it’s been a remarkable journey.”
What has the community been like here?
“It’s a way to raise a family. We had four kids and all our kids worked on the farm. When they came home, they had chores to do. Knock on wood, we never had problems with kids.”
Is there anything you’d like to say to all those who have supported Southern Swiss Dairy?
“We just appreciate everybody. We had a a lot of people from the community during COVID come out to the farm when we couldn’t get products in the stores and we sold a lot. That really kept us going. We just say thank you for doing what they do to help us.”
Southern Swiss Dairy LLC is located at 279 Rosier Road in Waynesboro. You can find them on social media on their Facebook and website to keep up with the latest at the farm.
