The Maine cheese industry began over one hundred and fifty years ago in 1871 with the building of the Sandy River Cheese Company factory in Strong. Dairy processing factories began to pop up all over Maine, with numbers peaking at over 60 butter and cheese factories in the mid-1890’s. Unfortunately, a steady decline over the early 1900’s left us with very few cheesemakers in what was once a thriving economic segment. By the 1970’s, there were only a small handful of cheesemakers left, all of whom were making farmstead goat cheese.
By the 1980’s however, cheesemaking was getting a new foothold in Maine, with a new, energetic group of just over a dozen artisan cheesemakers. Some of these cheesemakers would ultimately become the backbone of the modern Maine Cheese Guild. In 2000, MOFGA gathered a group of cheesemakers, an importer, a chef, a couple of regulators and a veterinarian for a Value-Added Dairy Workshop, to open communication amongst cheesemakers who had expressed interest in creating an informal Alliance.
This meeting would become a jumping-off point, and in 2003 the Maine Cheese Guild was officially incorporated under its first president, Caitlin Hunter of Appleton Creamery. According to the Oxford Companion to Cheese, this was the first official modern Cheese Guild in the United States. The mission of the Guild, originally written in its constitution, is “to support and encourage the Maine cheesemaking community. We will do this through development of a collective voice to promote Maine cheese and cheesemakers, educate cheesemakers and consumers, coordinate resources and share the joy and art of regional cheeses.” This mission is as applicable and appropriate today as it was on that day in 2003.
From its inception, the MCG has been creating opportunities for Maine Cheesemakers to learn, connect, and grow their businesses. From its first few cheese festivals in the early 2000’s, the opportunities have continued to roll. The MCG has facilitated workshops for cheesemakers with instructors from all over the United States and the World, including cheesemakers and dairy academics from Vermont, Oregon, Wisconsin, Massachusetts, Ontario Canada, Scotland, and France. In 2017, a University of Vermont study named Maine the Fastest Growing Cheesemaking state, with only New York exceeding the number of cheesemakers in Maine. Also in 2017, Maine cheeses won 17 awards at the American Cheese Society annual awards.
The MCG has been facilitating a statewide event called Open Creamery Day each year since 2005; Maine cheesemakers open their farms and facilities to their communities, “inviting the public to meet the animals that make the milk, and responsibly tour the creameries … to learn about the tradition of Maine cheese making.” This year’s open creamery day will take place on Sunday October 9.
After several years of hiatus (while the production of cheesemakers caught up to increasing demand), the Maine Cheese Festival returned in force in 2016 and has grown consistently each year (excepting 2020 and 2021, which were both significantly affected by COVID-19). This year’s Cheese Festival (at Manson Park in Pittsfield on Sunday, September 11) will feature not only a wide selection of Maine cheese but also our second annual Maine Cheese Awards, four different bands, an expanded Beer and Beverage Garden, numerous artisan food producers, Maine Made specialty goods as well as a variety of food trucks. Want to attend? Get your tickets HERE!
Under its current President, Holly Aker, the Maine Cheese Guild seeks to continue its growth and its visibility both within Maine and without. We seek to grow our membership of not just cheesemakers, but cheese lovers of all types; from chefs to retail shops and right along to consumers. Currently, we are working on the return of in-person events and workshops after several difficult years of COVID-19 restrictions. In the coming months and years, the MCG hopes to continue facilitating the certification and growth of new cheesemaking operations, as well as the growth of the Maine Cheese industry on the whole.
