*** IF YOU ARE ALREADY REGISTERED AND NEED INFO ON HOW TO ACCESS OUR ONLINE EVENT PLATFORM, SET IT UP FOR YOUR TIME ZONE, VIEW/JOIN LIVE SESSIONS, AND WATCH RECORDED SESSIONS YOU CAN FIND THAT HERE. ***

*** If you are attending the event and having any technical issues, please email info@vtcheese.com for help! ***

ABOUT THE EVENT

This virtual/online event is designed to provide exposure to new ideas and educational experiences for artisan cheesemakers – to help them advance their cheesemaking and business practices, as well as our industry as a whole.  While our content focuses on information to support professional cheesemakers, attendance is open to all, including other cheese industry professionals, amateur cheesemakers, the general public, and anyone who wants to dive more deeply into the world of cheese. We encourage anyone curious and interested to explore our schedule and speaker lineup.

DATE

Friday, February 18, 2022

SPEAKERS

• Robert Aguilera FCE Account Manager/Cheese Educator (CHR Hansen)
• Dr. Hannah Davis Lecturer, Ruminant Nutrition (Newcastle University)
• Jennifer Kast Cheesemaker (Bwlchwernen Fawr/Holden Dairy Farm)
• Harold McGee  Food Writer/Lecturer (Author of “Nose Dive: A Field Guide to the World’s Smells”)
• Dr. Moshe Rosenberg  Professor (Department of Food Science & Technology, University of California, Davis)
• Brian Schlatter Northeast Rep & Resident Cheese Expert (Fromagex)

PRESENTATIONS

• Milk Nutritional Quality and Practical Guidance for Grazing Management.  This presentation will delve into how milk nutritional quality is defined and how animal management choices, grazing strategies, and sward (pasture) quality can impact milk. Presentation content and findings presented are applicable for cow, goat, sheep and other ruminant management.  SPEAKER BIO:  Dr. Hannah Davis is a goat farmer and Lecturer in Ruminant Nutrition and Pasture Management at Newcastle University, UK. Her research aims to understand how dairy management practices affect milk quality, animal health and environmental impact with a view to optimizing sustainable farming systems. This has included studying fat composition of cow milk produced with different management practices (conventional, organic, 100% forage-fed), identifying breed combinations best suited to low-input diary production and working with forage-based farmers to identify individual cows that are the most efficient converters of forage to milk while maintaining good health and fertility. Currently, Hannah has a few projects underway, including the environmental and animal health impacts of switching from rotational to mob grazing, using new technology to measure the methane emissions from grazing ruminants and identifying the most suitable pasture species in North East England, given the changing climate.
• Virtual Tour:  Bwlchwernen Fawr/Holden Farm Dairy (Wales, UK).  Bwlchwernen Fawr is the Welsh farm home to Holden Farm Dairy, makers of Hafod cheddar. It comprises 300 acres of hilly pasture in the mid-section of Wales, about 10 miles from the Irish Sea (as the crow flies). The farm supports a mixed Ayrshire dairy herd of approximately 75 cows, producing the vast majority of feed and bedding for the herd and attending youngstock and followers. While the farm has been certified Organic since 1973, the central organizing principal guiding the decisions of owners Becky and Patrick Holden is that of harmony: living and farming in harmony with the land and environment. The Holdens are both active participants in the daily running of the farm and dairy, from milking to turning cheese, reflecting their emphasis on knowing through doing. Patrick is also the founder and chief executive of the Sustainable Food Trust, an organization the advocates for sustainable food production and land management. In this virtual tour – we will explore the farm and its cheesemaking efforts both, followed by Q/A with Hafod cheesemaker Jenn Kast.   SPEAKER BIO:  Currently a cheesemaker at Bwlchwernen Fawr, Jennifer Kast has been involved in the specialty food industry for over 30 years. Her early career included experience working at Zingerman’s Delicatessen in Michigan and Neal’s Yard Dairy in London. Prior to her work with Bwlchwernen Fawr, she spent 8 years in the first of the new wave of urban micro-dairies, London’s Kappacasein, helped initiate the cheese/milk educational group MilkJamLondon, and coordinated cheesemaking classes for Neal’s Yard Dairy.
• Cheese Defects & Their Prevention. The evolution of desired cheese quality attributes is governed by an array of microbiological, biochemical and physico-chemical cascades. Deviations from the desired path along these cascades can yield cheese defects that adversely affect product quality and acceptability. Rather than relying on removing defective cheeses prior to marketing, this presentation is intended to help cheese makers acquire knowledge and skills to prevent, or at least minimize, the development of defects during cheesemaking and aging.  SPEAKER BIO:  Prof. Moshe Rosenberg received his B.Sc. (Biological Sciences) from the Hebrew University in Jerusalem and his M.Sc. and D.Sc. degrees (Food Engineering and Biotechnology) from the Technion, Israel Institute of Technology. Since 1990 he has been with the Department of Food Science and Technology at the University of California, Davis, where he teaches courses in dairy sciences and technology, cheese science and technology, and food forensics.  In addition to providing training for cheesemakers and dairy processors, he researches topics related to milk processing; cheese science and technology; physico-chemical, and microencapsulating properties of bio-polymers; food forensics; terroir, and the authentication of dairy and food products.
• Renovate, Scale-up, and Streamline …Thoughts and Discussion about Options and Pitfalls This “out of the vat” presentation focuses on the equipment and spaces we use – and how when we make changes to these, cheese production itself can be affected.  SPEAKER BIOS:  This presentation will be shared by Robert Aguilera and Brian Schlatter.  CHR Hansen FCE Account Manager Robert Aguilera has been “in” cheese since 2001.  His background includes experience in cheese retail (Formaggio) as well as 9.5 years of production trade sales & support for artisan and industrial cheesemakers (at Fromagex).  A charter member of the Massachusetts Cheese Guild and founder of the Boston’s Bueno Queso Social Club, he has helped artisan cheesemakers with cultures, equipment, designing/using aging room shelving and tools, packaging for better shelf life and product/process troubleshooting.  >>> Brian Schlatter is a sixth-generation dairyman whose cheesemaking career began in 2007, with the founding of Canal Junction Farmstead Cheese in conjunction with Canal Junction Farm (Ohio). Experienced in cheesemaking, facility design, product conception, and business development, Brian’s passion for cheesemaking is rooted in a desire to preserve the methods of the past, while bringing back the seasonal flavors, textures, and styles of cheese for non-industrial cheesemaking. His experience includes cheesemaking with Gubbeen (Schull, Ireland); crafting sheep milk cheeses at Meadowood Farms (New York); starting Black Radish Creamery’s cheese shop (Columbus, Ohio); and managing Old Chatham Creamery’s  move to their new facility while overseeing the production of their existing product lines and developing new products (New York). Brian holds Vermont Institute for Artisan Cheese, Certified Cheese Professional (CCP), Certified Cheese Sensory Evaluator (CCSE) certificates; a Bachelor’s Degree in Finance; and is Fromagex’s Northeast rep and resident cheese expert. 
• Sensory Analysis Happy Hour. For our Sensory Analysis Happy Hour, Harold McGee will dive into the diversity of cheese aromas, their place in the larger “osmocosm,” and their role in choosing good accompaniments for the cheese course.  Knowing what your cheese “goes” with can help you not only know more about how to enjoy it – but how to sell it (and help others do that too!).  SPEAKER BIO:  Harold McGee studied at Caltech and Yale, and since 1980 has been writing about the science of food and cooking. He’s the author of the award-winning book On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of the Kitchen, a visiting lecturer in Harvard University’s course “From Haute Cuisine to Soft Matter Science,” and a former columnist for The New York Times. He’s been named food writer of the year by Bon Appétit magazine and to the TIME 100, an annual list of the world’s most influential people. His latest book is “Nose Dive: A Field Guide to the World’s Smells”.

PRICING & REGISTRATION

General Attendee – $60

Vermont Cheese Council members receive 20% off (please reach out for this promo code or look for it in your membership e-news)

Please note that for guilds that assist us with outreach we are offering discounts for their own members.  If you belong to a cheese guild, please ask your guild leadership to see if they are participating in this program.

We are also offering free conference access for anyone who registers for our online course, The Science of Farmstead Cheese (see next section on this page for more info).

By attending the conference and/or viewing its sessions, you agree to its Terms & Conditions.

*** SPECIAL OFFER WITH THE SCIENCE OF FARMSTEAD CHEESE ONLINE COURSE

For anyone who purchases our Online Course, The Science of Farmstead Cheese, between now and Sunday February 13, we will offer them one complimentary free attendee pass to this conference.  A great discount for those looking for both a fun conference experience and a deeper look at the science of cheesemaking.  (Does not apply with VCC member discount for course)

AN ENORMOUS THANK YOU TO OUR 2021 SPONSORS

WE ARE NOW ACCEPTING 2022 CONFERENCE SPONSORS!!

INTERESTED IN JOINING OUR SPONSORS?

Sponsors play an important role in our event, in that they become part of our team by helping to make the event affordable for all who attend. Many cheesemakers are still facing a mix of challenges related to the impacts of COVID.  Our goal is to continue to offer access to world class knowledge at an affordable price – and every sponsor who supports us can help with that. We hope you will join us in this effort!  We hope you will join us in this effort!

We are offering sponsorship levels for organizations big and small!  If interested in more information, please reach out to info@vtcheese.com.

INTERESTED IN OTHER LEARNING RESOURCES TOO?

Visit our learning resources page…