TWIN FALLS - Troy Thomas, a production manager at the Glanbia Foods cheese plant in Twin Falls, lifted his hand Tuesday from a 50,000-pound vat and offered a small white sample to a visitor. The visitor obligingly reached out and grabbed a bite.

"That's the freshest cheese I've ever tasted in my life," said Larry LaRocco, a Democrat vying for the U.S. Senate in 2008, a large grin plastered across his face.

LaRocco's taste test came toward the end of an eight-hour shift as a cheese maker in the latest stop of his "Working for Senate" campaign. Beginning at 7 a.m. and finishing mid-afternoon, LaRocco -decked out in a white lab coat, plastic shoe covers and an orange helmet - followed and assisted the plant's bustling workers as they pushed buttons, crunched numbers and, ultimately, processed cheese in giant containers.

"Cheese is a big industry in the Magic Valley," he said. "I wanted to come here and learn about what it's all about."

LaRocco, who briefly lived in Twin Falls in the 1970s, said that the dairy industry is an intricate force in Idaho's economy and a valuable asset to south-central Idaho. The Twin Falls plant, one of three for Glanbia in the Magic Valley, operates 24 hours a day and produces about 250,000 pounds of cheese daily by processing 2.5 million pounds of milk.

"I'm just really impressed by the volume," he said.

LaRocco, 60, who served four years in the U.S. House of Representatives, is hoping to replace Republican U.S. Sen. Larry Craig. LaRocco lost the race for lieutenant governor last year to Jim Risch.

LaRocco said he doesn't expect to compete in a primary, but his opponent remains unknown. Craig, a third-term senator, has yet to decide whether he will run again. Risch has said he might run if Craig decides not to. Rex Rammell, a former elk rancher from Rexburg, recently announced he will seek the Republican nomination.

"I'll take whoever they'll throw at me," LaRocco said Tuesday.

LaRocco has raised nearly $80,000 since April, according to the Associated Press.

In his ongoing trips to familiarize himself with working Idahoans, LaRocco will head to Lewiston next week to work with the Nez Perce County Court Services.

Workers at the cheese plant said LaRocco meshed well the employees, taking a lunch break with one and breaks with another. LaRocco spoke positively about an entry level position that pays about $14 per hour at Glanbia, which employs 80 people.

"He really wants to get a feel for what the folks on the floor go through on a daily basis," said Tim Hesby, the Twin Falls plant manager.

Jared S. Hopkins can be reached at jhopkins@magicvalley.com.