Dairy Companies Volunteer to Clean Up Warner Park in Madison, Donate Nutritious Cheese to Second Harvest of Southern Wisconsin

Leaders from dozens of top dairy companies turned out at Madison’s Warner Park yesterday for an afternoon park cleanup organized by the IDFA Foundation and Wild Warner, an organization created to preserve and maintain Warner Park. The volunteers removed trash, cleared brush, cut back invasive plant species, and beautified pedestrian and bicycle trails throughout the park and Duck Pond. Earlier in the day, the IDFA Foundation visited Second Harvest Foodbank of Southern Wisconsin to recognize a donation of 200 cases of American Swiss sliced cheese by Associated Milk Producers Inc. (AMPI), the nation’s largest cheese cooperative owned by families who produce quality milk on Midwest dairy farms.

The IDFA Foundation is a 501(c)3 non-profit that seeks to make an important contribution to people and communities on behalf of the U.S. dairy industry by providing grants that reduce hunger, improve environmental sustainability, and enhance the welfare of people working in food manufacturing. The Foundation, supported in large part by contributions from U.S. dairy companies, has provided more than 500,000 meals to food insecure people in the U.S. and around the world since 2022.

“The IDFA Foundation is proud to partner with Wild Warner and Dane County Parks, Associated Milk Producers Inc. and Second Harvest Foodbank of Southern Wisconsin to support the greater Madison community,” said Matt Herrick, executive director of the IDFA Foundation. “I am grateful to our volunteers for adding to the natural beauty of Warner Park and to partners and donors for making today’s gifts possible.”

"Warner Park's wild areas provide the community with a chance to relax in a beautiful natural setting, but more importantly, provide habitat for songbirds, pollinating insects, turtles and frogs, and a number of rare plant communities. The work of protecting and restoring these natural areas is ongoing and demands a great many hours from volunteers in the community. This visit from the IDFA Foundation volunteers was an enormous help!" said Kathlean Wolf, Wisconsin Master Naturalist Volunteer and Volunteer Coordinator for Wild Warner, Inc. "Wild Warner and the City of Madison are so grateful for the hard work of the IDFA volunteers. They dug out a significant amount of invasive burdock plants from our old-growth wood, which is a huge help in our restoration projects this year. And their work of planting elderberry bushes and beautiful native wildflowers will be appreciated for many years to come."