Saturday Is Challenge Butter Day

A Dublin-based business is getting its day in the sun this weekend.

The governor has declared Saturday to be "Challenge Butter Day" to honor the company's 100th anniversary.

Challenge Butter began in 1911 in Los Angeles with four employees, a horse and cart and 132 pounds of butter. It sold 12 pounds its first day in business.

The company has grown into a cooperative that markets and distributes dairy products from 600 large family farms. It's now the largest butter brand in the West.

Its headquarters is in Dublin and its largest dairy operation is in Fresno.

Challenge has been responsible for many industry firsts: 

• The first lab sampling of all butter to ensure quality
• The first consumer-size Swiss cheese package
• The invention of a metal churn in place of a wooden churn, which soon became an industry standard
• The practice of shipping butter in paper rather than in wooden crates
• The introduction of the half-gallon carton of milk instead of quart carton

Challenge is a wholly-owned subsidiary of California Dairies Inc.

More information on how the company is celebrating can be found on its website, challengedairy.com.