Released February 19, 2009

JEFFERSON, Ohio -- Enhance your dairy operation with a farmstead cheese business with the aid of an Ohio State University Extension cheese-making workshop.

The workshop will be held April 16-18 at the OSU Extension office in Ashtabula County, 39 Wall St., Jefferson. The course will run from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. with an optional evening cheese house tour. Registration is $425 per person and includes course tuition, resource materials, workshop supplies, lunches and refreshments. Registration is limited to the first 15 people.

"Hands-On Basic Cheese Making -- Enhancing Dairy Profitability with Cheese," is packed with information on milk quality, ingredients used in cheese making, cheese-making processes and techniques, and tips for establishing a cheese-making business.

David Marrison, an OSU Extension educator for Ashtabula County, said that the workshop is intended for those interested in a value-added opportunity in meeting the public's growing demand for local cheeses.

"Farmstead and artisan cheese operations allow dairy farm families to become price-makers instead of price-takers for their milk," said Marrison. "The heart of the workshop is the hands-on opportunity to make a number of different cheeses, including Gouda, Havarti, Lactic, Tomme, provolone, Paneer, Ricotta and Mozzarella."

Peter Dixon, one of the nation's premier cheese-making instructors and operator of the Center for Farmstead Milk Processing in Vermont, will teach the course. Dixon's experience includes training with fourth-generation French cheese makers; working as a cheese maker and quality control manager at Shelburne Farms and Vermont Butter and Cheese; consulting on international development projects to create farmstead cheese cooperatives, improve product quality, and develop brand recognition for local sheep cheeses; and developing and operating food safety programs for Vermont Butter and Cheese Company and the Vermont shepherd cheese producers.

According to the Ohio Department of Agriculture, Ohio ranks ninth in the nation in general cheese making, and first in the nation in Swiss cheese production.

For more information, contact the OSU Extension office in Ashtabula County at (440) 576-9008, or e-mail Abbey Averill at averill.10@osu.edu.

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http://www.ag.ohio-state.edu/~news/story.php?id=5019

Contact: David Marrison, (440) 576-9008, marrison.2@osu.edu