A dairy feed supplement manufacturer has raised $1.8 million as part of its effort to build a manufacturing plant in Ixonia.
Easton, Maryland-based Novera Inc. plans to build a 10,000-square-foot plant at 1255 Marietta Ave. in Ixonia, said founder Thomas Haschen.
Haschen formed a Wisconsin company, Novera/Ixonia LLC, for the project Dec. 8, according to state records. He is one of four investors who contributed $1.8 million to the project cost, according to an SEC filing. Haschen declined to disclose the total project cost.
This will be Novera’s first manufacturing plant, and will employ about nine people. Haschen has been completing research and development on the supplements for seven years, and plans to establish several other plants like this one in other Midwest dairy communities.
Novera has developed a patented technology using vegetable protein sources to formulate high-tech protein supplements for dairy animals, Haschen said. They will be produced in a powdered form at the plant and distributed to feed manufacturers. The supplements can include up to 48 percent crude protein, but do not contain any animal protein.
“It’s a very unique product,” he said. “There are other products that are made out of straight soybean meal. Our process allows us to use many different sources of vegetable protein.”
Haschen chose Ixonia because “it has a transportation hub that we need. There’s some facilities there that I’ll be using and it’s easy access from the Milwaukee airport. And we’re near a bunch of cows.”
Construction is expected to be completed in the spring, depending on weather conditions, and the plant would begin operations in April, Haschen said.
