Reiter Dairy production temporarily stopped due to sanitation issues

SPRINGFIELD — Reiter Dairy’s Springfield facility was forced to close for about 12 hours today after officials from the Ohio Department of Agriculture raised concerns with sanitation at the facility that had not been resolved after a previous inspection.

The facility, at 1961 Commerce Circle, closed beginning shortly after midnight last night and is expected to reopen this morning, said Amanda McDonald, a spokeswoman for the ODA. She said the issues discovered at the plant did not present any health concerns for the public.

She said staff from the state agency inspected the Springfield facility in November and raised concerns about the cleanliness of the facility and drainage issues in a milk receiving area. Not all of the issues raised by inspectors were fixed when inspectors returned to the facility on Thursday last week, prompting a temporary shutdown until workers at the facility addressed those concerns, she said.

Inspection reports from the state were not immediately available this morning. Company officials from Reiter also could not be reached for comment Monday morning.

McDonald said the initial issues were raised during routine inspections that are conducted about every two years.