Matansuka Maid turns 70: Alaskans and some good management keep Mat Maid alive and well.

• Author: Martin, Gary L.
• Position: Matanuska Maid Dairy - Company overview

Alaskans know a good thing when they taste it. That may be one reason why Matansuka Maid has survived to celebrate its 70th anniversary in November. Soon after it started off as a cooperative in 1936, it became Alaska's largest creamery and dairy distribution company; it still enjoys the title today.

The second reason for the company's survival is Joe Van Treeck, the current president and CEO of Mat Maid. Van Treeck has been with Mat Maid for 20 years; in 1989, he was elevated to his present position by the State's Agricultural Revolving Loan Fund board (ARLF). Since then, he has skillfully guided Mat Maid through the jaws of bankruptcy to its current healthy state of being.

In recent years, Mat Maid peaked the $16 million mark in annual revenues. Still a state-owned company, Mat Maid is completely debt free and busting its seams at the current 65,000-square-foot facility and headquarters on Northern Lights Boulevard in Anchorage.

ANOTHER CRITICAL POINT

Van Treeck says Mat Maid is rapidly reaching another critical point in its history. Although the company is thriving financially, and Van Treeck has a vision for its future, Mat Maid needs two things. It desperately needs a new building for plant operations; there is no room for expansion or any further development at its current facility.

The second thing that is critical to Mat Maid's survival, according to Van Treeck, is the need for privatization, to become a publicly owned corporation.

"When we started the process of coming out of bankruptcy back in 1986, we were $6 million in the hole," Van Tree& said. "By 2004, that debt was paid back. Plus, we made all of our reinvestments, including upgrades to our equipment and the development of new processes for our plant. And we did that all with cash; there was no funding from the state.

"During those 20 years, we probably earned a total of about $20 million in revenue, while also paying the dairy farmers an above-market price for their product.

"To me that's a significant milestone. So, when it's said that we've fulfilled our obligation to the state and are poised for privatization, it's just that; we're ready to move on. At this point, if we're sold, the state should at least recover their original investment off the assets that are here.

"Once we become privatized, our next step would be taking Mat Maid from a $16 million-a-year company to earning $30 million to $50 million a year. But that will require a new kind of capital and a new kind...