Debt - Debt Instruments (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Total debt and capital lease obligations	$ 445,055	$ 906,344
Subtotal	1,145,055	910,918
Unamortized debt issuance costs	0	(4,574)
Less liabilities subject to compromise	(700,000)	0
Less current portion	(440,385)	(1,174)
Total long-term portion	4,670	905,170
Dean Foods Company
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Total debt and capital lease obligations	958,800	719,300
Dean Foods Company \| Senior notes due 2023
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Senior notes	$ 700,000	$ 700,000
Debt instrument, interest rate (as a percent)	6.50%	6.50%
Subsidiary debt obligations
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Total debt and capital lease obligations	$ 186,255	$ 191,618
Subsidiary debt obligations \| Capital lease and other
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Finance lease and other	$ 6,255	1,618
Senior secured debtor-in-possession credit facility \| Dean Foods Company \| Senior Secured Credit Facility
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Senior secured revolving credit facility		$ 0
Credit facility interest rate (as a percent)	9.11%	0.00%
Senior secured revolving credit facility \| Dean Foods Company \| Senior Secured Credit Facility
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Senior secured revolving credit facility	$ 0	$ 19,300
Credit facility interest rate (as a percent)	0.00%	4.65%
Receivables securitization facility \| Subsidiary debt obligations
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Senior secured revolving credit facility	$ 180,000	$ 190,000
Credit facility interest rate (as a percent)	3.50%	3.54%

Capital Lease Obligations and Other Borrowings

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- Definition

Debt and Capital Lease Obligations, Discounts and Debt Issuance Costs

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- Definition

Debt and Capital Lease Obligations, Gross

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- Definition

Liabilities Subject to Compromise, Debt

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- Definition

Amount of short-term and long-term debt and lease obligation.

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- Definition

Contractual interest rate for funds borrowed, under the debt agreement.

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Line items represent financial concepts included in a table. These concepts are used to disclose reportable information associated with domain members defined in one or many axes to the table.

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- Definition

Weighted average interest rate of debt outstanding.

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- Definition

The carrying value as of the balance sheet date of the current and noncurrent portions of long-term obligations drawn from a line of credit, which is a bank's commitment to make loans up to a specific amount. Examples of items that might be included in the application of this element may consist of letters of credit, standby letters of credit, and revolving credit arrangements, under which borrowings can be made up to a maximum amount as of any point in time conditional on satisfaction of specified terms before, as of and after the date of drawdowns on the line. Includes short-term obligations that would normally be classified as current liabilities but for which (a) postbalance sheet date issuance of a long term obligation to refinance the short term obligation on a long term basis, or (b) the enterprise has entered into a financing agreement that clearly permits the enterprise to refinance the short-term obligation on a long term basis and the following conditions are met (1) the agreement does not expire within 1 year and is not cancelable by the lender except for violation of an objectively determinable provision, (2) no violation exists at the BS date, and (3) the lender has entered into the financing agreement is expected to be financially capable of honoring the agreement.

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- Definition

Amount of long-term debt and lease obligation, classified as noncurrent.

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Amount of long-term debt and lease obligation, classified as current.

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- Definition

Including the current and noncurrent portions, carrying value as of the balance sheet date of Notes with the highest claim on the assets of the issuer in case of bankruptcy or liquidation (with maturities initially due after one year or beyond the operating cycle if longer). Senior note holders are paid off in full before any payments are made to junior note holders.

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