HIRAM, Ohio, April 12 /PRNewswire/ — Great Lakes Cheese brings home another gold medal. This year it was the Best of Class Gold Award for Aged Cheddar at the World Championship Cheese Contest, hosted by the Wisconsin Cheese Makers Association (WCMA). Great Lakes’ Cheddar won the category over 48 competitors from around the world. This prestigious award brings the count to 76 received over the past 16 years from participation in major competition.
Last year (2003), Great Lakes Cheese won an unprecedented three Best of Class Gold Awards at the WCMA United States Championship Cheese Contest. Winners were Aged Cheddar, Provolone and Whole Milk Mozzarella.
This year’s panel was made up of independent international judges that evaluate entries on many quality attributes including flavor, body, texture and finish.
As stated by Gary Vanic, President and CEO of the Great Lakes Cheese Company, “Winning three Gold Awards last year in the U.S. competition was a great honor. Having our Aged Cheddar win another Gold Award at this year’s World Championship Cheese Contest reinforces our position as one of the nation’s leading producers of fine cheeses.”
Since its founding by Swiss immigrant, Hans Epprecht in 1958, the company has grown from a single operation in Northeast Ohio to multiple state-of-the- art facilities located in Cuba and Adams, New York; La Crosse and Plymouth, Wisconsin; Filmore, Utah and its ultra-modern, 220,000 square foot Headquarters in Hiram, Ohio.
“Truly a world class company, Great Lakes Cheese remains privately held with over 20% of company ownership shared by employees. Today, the company is ranked as one of America’s top cheese producers with annual sales approaching one billion dollars,” says Mr. Vanic.
Primary customers served include supermarket chains, club stores, national foodservice accounts and foodservice distributors plus industrial accounts throughout the United States, Puerto Rico and Mexico. Cheeses manufactured by the company are sold under a wide variety of private label store brands plus the Great Lakes and Adams Reserve names. In addition, many popular imported cheeses are available. In total, Great Lakes markets over 60 types of cheeses making it a “one-stop” supplier for many of its customers.
For more information on the Great Lakes Cheese Company and its cheese products, visit the company’s web site at www.greatlakescheese.com .
