CLACKAMAS, Ore. — Two longtime Portland-area dairy companies are joining forces under one roof. 

Alpenrose Dairy, a Southwest Portland institution since 1916, is finalizing a deal to purchase Larsen’s Creamery in nearby Clackamas. Terms were not disclosed, though the sale is expected to close by the end of the year. 

Alpenrose plans to move its production, distribution and warehouse operations to Larsen’s nine-acre campus in late 2023.

The move keeps Alpenrose rooted in the Portland metro area while expanding its home delivery grocery service to more east side neighborhoods, starting with Damascus in December, said Josh Reynolds, the dairy’s vice president and general manager.

Larsen’s also offers more space and facilities to expand production or consider adding new products, Reynolds said. 

“It’s no secret the fluid milk business is in decline,” he said. “This gives us the initial infrastructure to support fluid milk, in addition to butter, and gives us a fresh lens on what we’re building for the future.” 

The last several years have marked a period of transition for Alpenrose. The dairy was founded by Swiss immigrant Florian Cadonau, who originally used horse-drawn wagons to haul three-gallon cans of milk from local farms.

For more than a century, Alpenrose was run by Cadonau’s descendants. A legal dispute between family members resulted in the company being sold to Smith Brothers Farms in 2019.

Based in Seattle, Smith Brothers bought Alpenrose’s dairy assets and equipment, but not the iconic property on Southwest Shattuck Road in Portland that was once home to Little League Baseball fields, a bicycle-racing track, 4-H Discovery Farm and replica frontier town named “Dairyville.” 

According to The Oregonian/OregonLive, a real estate developer has proposed turning the 50-plus acres into a 193-house subdivision.

“We knew we had to find a new home,” Reynolds said. “They were clear that they were going to sell the property at some point.” 

Meanwhile, Andrew Gianopoulos, owner of Larsen’s Creamery, was ready to step down after 45 years in the business. 

Alexis Gianopoulos, Andrew’s daughter and director of operations, said they were looking for a buyer who would continue to run the creamery, retain their employees and share their core values.

“When this opportunity presented itself, it seemed like a perfect match,” she said. 

Today, Larsen’s produces butter under its own brand, Mother’s Choice, as well as other private labels — including Alpenrose — at its Clackamas plant. The facility receives about 200,000 pounds of cream every day, Gianopoulos said. It is pasteurized, churned into butter and packaged on automated production lines.

Alpenrose and Larsen’s already share many customers, Reynolds said, and so far the news of the merger has been well received by wholesale buyers.

“They would prefer to make one phone call, not two,” he said. “We’re excited to expand our butter offerings in our wholesale business.” 

Alpenrose has more than 500 wholesale customers, including restaurants, coffee shops and grocery stores, and 6,000 home delivery customers throughout the metro area, Reynolds said. Together, the companies have 163 employees.

“Our objective is that there is going to be a role for everyone who wants to stay with the company,” Reynolds said. “Alpenrose is Portland’s hometown dairy. We want to keep it that way.”