Prairie Farms Caves of Faribault Earns Medals at World Cheese Awards

Cave-Aged Gouda and Gorgonzola Cheeses Take Silver and Bronze Awards

EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. (November 22, 2024) - The annual World Cheese Awards competition recently concluded with the Prairie Farms Caves of Faribault Division earning impressive accolades for its cheeses including a silver award for Grotto 222™ Natural Rinded Gouda and a bronze for AmaGorg® Gorgonzola.

The World Cheese Awards is an esteemed cheese judging competition that brings together cheesemakers, retailers, buyers, and food commentators from around the world. This year's contest held in Viseu, Portugal, featured over 4,700 cheeses from more than 40 countries. The big finishes for Caves of Faribault cheeses are notable considering the record number of entries for the latest contest. Expert cheese judges from around the world made their top picks after evaluating products on appearance, aroma, texture, mouthfeel, and flavor.

Grotto 222™ Natural Rinded Gouda is one of the newest affinage cheese offerings from Caves of Faribault. It is cured next to Blue cheeses in underground caves to achieve its unique flavor. Spores from the Blue cheeses float to the Gouda resulting in a natural rind forming on the outside. The cheese is then flipped multiple times a week and hand rubbed. The process spreads a "magical forest" of mold spores even further to create uniform coverage and an even rind. After establishing the rind, the Gouda is moved to a separate cave where it continues aging until the perfect flavor and texture are achieved.

AmaGorg® Gorgonzola is hand-made and carefully aged 90 days in the historic sandstone cheese caves of Faribault, MN. Cave aging provides an ideal environment for the development of blue veining in the cheese and contributes to its rich, clean, natural flavor.

"We are honored to be a member of such a prestigious group and equally proud of our team for their dedication to making award-winning cheese," said Mike Christensen, Vice President of Sales for Prairie Farms' Cheese Division. "I'm also proud of our dairy farmers for providing the highest quality milk that goes into these products."

The recent wins for Caves of Faribault cheeses at the World Cheese Awards are not the first. Jeffs' Select Gouda, now retired, received a bronze award at the 2019 competition.

Prairie Farms Dairy, Inc. is one of the largest and most successful dairy cooperatives operating in the Midwest and the South. Elements of the cooperative include more than 600 farm families, 7,000 associates, 48 manufacturing plants, 100+ distribution facilities, and annual sales of over $4.69 billion. Prairie Farms is a nationally recognized leader in the dairy industry known for setting the standard for milk flavor innovations and producing award-winning milk, cheese, and cultured dairy products. With headquarters in Edwardsville, Ill., the Prairie Farms distribution footprint covers over 30 percent of the United States; products are available in grocery chains, mass merchandiser stores, club stores, convenience stores, dollar stores, drug stores, schools, foodservice outlets, and warehouse distribution centers.

Darin Copeland
618-659-5191
[email protected]

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