Bottling began last week and the plant will be at full production in late 2018. The plant will produce Great Value white and chocolate milk for nearly 500 Walmart stores in Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Ohio and Kentucky.

Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb and Charles Redfield, executive vice president of Food at Walmart U.S., make it official. Indiana is home to 21 dairy processing plants and 14 farmstead operations, helping the Hoosier state rank No. 14 in the nation in milk production and No. 2 in ice cream production.

Milk will be sourced from nearly 30 dairy farms in both Indiana and Michigan with these farms being an average of 140 miles from the plant.

Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb enjoys a cool glass of milk during the grand opening event. Cow's milk contains nine essential nutrients, including protein, calcium, potassium and vitamin D that are critical to human health.

Members of Heritage High School FFA talk to Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb during the event, wherein Walmart announced $10,000 in grants to local organizations that focus on the future of agriculture.

Since 1928, millions of agriculture students have donned the official FFA jacket and championed the FFA Creed. All 50 states and two U.S. territories are currently chartered, representing 653,359 student members who belong to one of 8,568 local FFA chapters. The organization’s mission is to prepare future generations for the challenges of feeding a growing population.

4‑H provides learning opportunities for kids to complete hands-on projects in areas like health, science, agriculture, and citizenship, in a positive environment where they receive guidance from adult mentors and are encouraged to take on proactive leadership roles. It is delivered by Cooperative Extension—a community of more than 100 public universities across the nation that provides experiences where young people learn by doing.