COMPANY NEWS

GUGGISBERG CHEESE WINS FIRST PLACE AT 2024 OHIO STATE FAIR CHEESE CONTEST

CLEVELAND, OHIO — On Thursday, July 18, 2024, judging took place for the Ohio State Fair Cheese Contest, where Guggisberg Cheese received first place in its category and the title of 2024 overall Reserve Champion. Guggisberg’s Ziller took the top spot in the Other Swiss class, and their Rinded Swiss followed in second place.

Ziller is the newest addition to the Guggisberg product line and has quickly risen in popularity since its debut in 2020. Its unique, slightly sweet flavor balances between traditional Premium Swiss and flavorful, creamy Baby Swiss.

Guggisberg attributes this honor to the experience and craftsmanship of their dedicated employees alongside the Grade-A quality milk produced by Holmes County and surrounding areas’ dairy farmers.

The Ohio State Fair Cheese contest is coordinated by American Diary Association Mideast. This year’s contest was held at Miceli Deli Products in Cleveland, and judged by representatives from Nelson-Jameson Inc, Schuman Cheese, Great Lakes Cheese, and Weiland’s Market. Participation for this year’s contest was at an all-time high with 71 entries from cheesemakers across the state

GUGGISBERG WINS FIRST-PLACE AWARDS AT 2024 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP CHEESE CONTEST

MADISON, WI — On Wednesday, March 5, 2024, the judging for the 35^th biennial World Championship Cheese Contest took place in Madison, Wisconsin, where Guggisberg Cheese’s Ziller was named one of the top 20 cheeses in the world. Guggisberg Ziller was awarded the top two spots in the Baby Swiss category, taking first with a score of 99.4, as well as second place with a score of 98.25. Guggisberg Smoked Swiss also received first place in the Open Smoked Hard Cheeses category with a score of 99.45, and was in the final round of top-100 cheeses.

Guggisberg is honored to have not only placed first in two categories, but to have been named as a top-20 cheese out of over 3,300 entries from all over the world. Guggisberg attributes this honor to the craftsmanship and dedication to quality of Guggisberg’s employees, as well as the Grade-A milk supplied by their local farmers.

The World Championship Cheese Contest is the world’s largest technical cheese, butter, and yogurt competition, and is hosted by the Wisconsin Cheesemakers Association. The contest takes place every-other year, alternating annually with the United States Cheese Championship. Entries are divided into classes and then judged on a scale ranging from one to one hundred by some of the field’s finest professors. The top three scores in each category are recognized for their excellence, with the top spot receiving the title of World Champion.

This year’s judging panel consisted of international industry experts from all over the world, whose professions include cheese graders, cheese buyers, dairy science professors, and researchers. The judges evaluated 3,302 dairy product submissions from 25 countries.

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GUGGISBERG BABY SWISS SWEEPS CLASS AT 2023 UNITED STATES CHAMPIONSHIP CHEESE CONTEST

GREEN BAY, WISCONSIN, February 22, 2023 – Guggisberg Cheese was awarded the top three spots in the Baby Swiss class at the 2023 United States Championship Cheese Contest. Claiming the first-place award is Guggisberg Baby Swiss, with a score of 99.275. Ziller, the newest addition to the Guggisberg product line, was awarded second place with a score of 99.15. Third place was awarded to another Baby Swiss wheel, with a score of 98.25. As a result, Guggisberg Baby Swiss was announced as one of the nation’s top 20 cheeses in the Championship Round of judging. This is the seventh consecutive contest where Guggisberg Cheese has received first place in their class.

The U.S. contest takes place every-other year, alternating with the World Championship Cheese Contest; however, because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the contest was forced to forego 2021’s competition. It is the largest technical evaluation of cheese, butter, and yogurt in the country, and considered to be the most prestigious of national dairy competitions. This year’s contest was held February 21 and 22 at Lambeau Field in Green Bay, Wisconsin, and saw 2,449 entries from 35 states. The submissions were split into one of 113 classes, and then scored on a 100-point scale by a panel of 42 professional judges from within the industry. The cheese is judged on flavor, texture, body, appearance, and color. Swiss cheese in particular is judged also on eye formation as well as the other characteristics, which makes it an especially difficult cheese to perfect. The three highest-scoring cheeses in each category are awarded trophies and recognition as the nation’s best.

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GUGGISBERG ZILLER AWARDED FIRST PLACE AT 2023 AMERICAN CHEESE SOCIETY COMPETITION

Minneapolis, MN – On Thursday, July 20, Guggisberg Cheese’s Ziller was awarded first place in the Emmental-Style  category at the 2023 American Cheese Society Competition Conference. While contest winners were announced at the ACS Annual Conference in Des Moines, Iowa, the actual judging and competition took place May 18-19 at the Huntington Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
The American Cheese Society is a leading supporter and promoter of artisan, farmstead, and specialty cheeses produced in America, and encourages the highest standards of cheesemaking focused on food safety and sustainability. The ACS promotes the art of American cheesemaking every year at its annual competition and conference, where awards are given to cheeses and other dairy products that have achieved technical excellence and exhibit the highest aesthetic qualities. Products are graded by industry professionals on a point system for their flavor, aroma, texture, and appearance. As a result , the three highest scores in each category receive 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place.
The ACS contest is the largest of its kind for American-made cheeses, and this year’s competition included 1.454 entries, Guggisberg Ziller was among the top 15 of the 1,454 entries.
This is another recent win for Guggisberg Ziller, which was also awarded first place in its class at the 2023 Ohio State Fair and 2nd place at the 2023 World Championship Cheese Contest.

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ANOTHER NATIONAL WIN FOR GUGGISBERG BABY SWISS AT 2022 AMERICAN CHEESE SOCIETY COMPETITION

PORTLAND, OR — On Thursday, July 21, Guggisberg Cheese’s Baby Swiss was awarded first place in the “Emmental Style with Eye Formation” category at the 2022 American Cheese Society Competition Conference. While contest winners were announced at the ACS Annual Conference in Portland, Oregon, the judging and competition took place May 19-20 at the Huntington Bank Stadium in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

The American Cheese Society is a leading supporter and promoter of artisan, farmstead, and specialty cheeses produced in America, and encourages the highest standards of cheesemaking focused on food safety and sustainability. The ACS promotes the art of American cheesemaking every year at an annual competition and conference, where awards are given to cheeses and dairy products that have achieved technical excellence and exhibit the highest aesthetic qualities. Products are graded by industry professionals on a point system for their achievements in flavor, aroma, texture, and appearance. As a result, the three highest scores in each category receive 1^st, 2^nd, and 3^rd place. This year’s competition included 1,387 entries from 196 organizations.

This is another prestigious win for Guggisberg, who was recently awarded 2022 Grand Champion at the Ohio State Fair.

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GUGGISBERG CHEESE NAMED GRAND CHAMPION AT 2022 OHIO STATE FAIR CHEESE COMPETITION

COLUMBUS, OHIO — On Monday, July 11, 2022, judging took place for the Ohio State Fair Cheese Competition, where Guggisberg Cheese, Inc. received top honors as the 2022 Grand Champion. Guggisberg took first place in the Swiss Class with their Premium Swiss as well as first place in the Other Swiss Class with their Baby Swiss, earning them the Grand Champion title.

With this honor comes the opportunity to be featured in the Ohio State Fair’s Sale of Champions, which auctions off the grand champions from every major category of the State Fair competitions. The sale takes place in August at the WCOL Celeste Center in Columbus, and the majority of the sale’s proceeds go to support Ohio’s 4-H programs.

The cheese contest is coordinated by the American Dairy Association Mideast, and the participation at this year’s event was at an all-time high with 60 entries from cheesemakers across the state.

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GUGGISBERG CHEESE WINS AGAIN AT 2022 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP CHEESE CONTEST

MILLERSBURG, OHIO — On Thursday, March 3, 2022, the judging for the World Championship Cheese Contest took place in Madison, Wisconsin, where Guggisberg Cheese placed second in two categories. Guggisberg Ziller took second place in the Baby Swiss category with a score of 98.925, and a Guggisberg Rinded Swiss wheel took second place in the Rinded Swiss category with a score of 98.625. The Swiss wheel took second place to Switzerland and among thirteen entries from Switzerland.

Guggisberg is honored to have placed highly among Switzerland, as they are the best in the world at crafting Swiss cheese. Swiss cheese is among the most difficult of cheeses to make, and subsequently, its grading process is also quite difficult. The eyes or “holes” in Swiss cheese are an incredibly important aspect and difficult to perfect.

This year’s judging panel consisted of 53 international industry experts from 16 different countries and 13 U.S. states, whose professions include cheese graders, cheese buyers, dairy science professors, and researchers. The judges evaluated 2,919 dairy product submissions from all over the world.

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SWISS WHEEL WINS UNITED STATES CHAMPIONSHIP CHEESE TITLE
MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN — A national panel of expert judges today named a Swiss wheel as the 2015 U.S. Championship Cheese.
Team Guggisberg Sugarcreek, of Guggisberg Cheese, Millersburg, Ohio, took top honors out of 1,892 entries from 28 states for their Swiss wheel. Out of a possible 100 points, the Swiss wheel scored 98.496 in the final round of judging, during which judges re-evaluated the top 16 cheeses at an evening charity gala to determine the overall champion.

First runner-up in the contest, with a score of 98.389, is a brick cheese made by John (Randy) Pitman of Mill Creek Cheese in Arena, Wisconsin. Second runner-up is a medium cheddar, made by the Kiel Production Team, in Land O Lakes, Kiel, Wisconsin which scored 98.337. “Every medalist should be extremely proud of being recognized as the best of the best in the largest national dairy competition ever held,” said John Umhoefer, executive director of the Wisconsin Cheese Makers Association, which hosts the biennial competition.

Wisconsin took home the most gold medals, with 56 of the total 90 categories judged. New York came in second among the states, with 7 golds. California had 6 gold medals, Vermont had 5, Idaho had 4, and Oregon had 3. Wisconsin, New York and California captured the most medals in the debut yogurt classes, each winning 2 medals.

The United States Championship Cheese Contest is the largest technical evaluation of cheese, butter and yogurt in the country and is rooted in more than 120 years of history, beginning when the Wisconsin Cheese Makers Association held its first cheese contest in 1891. In recent years, the event has flourished, more than doubling in size since 2001. This year, more than 33,000 pounds of dairy products were entered into the contest. For more information on the contest, as well as complete results for all 90 entry classes and contest photos, visit http://www.uschampioncheese.org.

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GUGGISBERG NAMED GRAND CHAMPION CHEESEMAKER FOR THE 5TH YEAR IN A ROW!
SUGARCREEK, OHIO — On Wednesday, September 30th, 2015, the judging took place for the Ohio Swiss Festival’s cheese competition, and Guggisberg Cheese was awarded Ohio Grand Champion Cheesemaker.
The Ohio Swiss Festival cheese competition is the third and final of the three contests which determine the Ohio Swiss Cheese Association’s Grand Champion Cheesemaker through an accumulation of points. The manufacturer with the most points at the end of the three contests is dubbed Grand Champion Cheesemaker. Guggisberg Cheese was named the winner of the first contest, the Ohio Swiss Cheese Association’s Dairy Month Contest, as well as Grand Champion at the 2015 Ohio State Fair contest.

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GUGGISBERG TAKES TOP 3 SPOTS AT AMERICAN CHEESE SOCIETY CONTEST
PROVIDENCE, RHODE ISLAND —On Friday, July 31st, Guggisberg Cheese was awarded the top three spots in the Swiss category at the American Cheese Society Contest. Guggisberg also placed first in the reduced-fat category with their Lite Swiss, as well as first place for their Colby in the American Originals Colby category.
The American Cheese Society is the leader in supporting and promoting American cheeses, and celebrates the art of American cheesemaking every year at an annual Awards Ceremony. This year’s contest yielded 267 companies submitting 1,779 products, with awards given to cheeses and dairy products that have achieved technical excellence and exhibit the highest aesthetic qualities. Products are graded for their achievements in flavor, aroma, texture, and appearance. As a result, the highest quality cheeses are those that ACS feels deserve the recognition of an award, based on a minimum number of points awarded (totaling 100 points possible) for first, second, or third place.

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GUGGISBERG CHEESE TAKES GRAND CHAMPION AT 2015 OHIO STATE FAIR COMPETITION
MILLERSBURG, OHIO — On Tuesday, July 14th, 2015, the judging took place for the Ohio State Fair’s cheese competition. Guggisberg Cheese’s entry was pronounced the Fair Grand Champion, and by extension, will be featured in the Ohio State Fair’s Sale of Champions in August. The Sale of Champions will take place at the WCOL Celeste Center in Columbus, and the event auctions off the grand champions from every major category of the State Fair 4-H competitions. The majority of the sale’s proceeds go to support Ohio’s 4-H programs. The Ohio State Fair cheese competition is the second of three contests which determine the Ohio Swiss Cheese Association’s Grand Champion Cheesemaker for 2015. Guggisberg Cheese was also named the winner of the first contest, held on June 10th. The third and final competition will be held at October’s Swiss Festival in Sugarcreek, Ohio.

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NATIONAL DAIRY MONTH CONTEST - JUNE 10, 2015
SUGARCREEK, OHIO —This is the first of three contests held during the year of 2015 to determine the Grand Champion and Reserve Champion cheesemakers for 2015. The winners for this contest were announced and awarded for two classifications:
Swiss Class:
First place Guggisberg Cheese Co., Millersburg, Ohio
Open Class:
(Various cheeses that do not fall in the Swiss classification)
First place Guggisberg Cheese, Millersburg, Ohio (for their Lite Swiss)
Second place Guggisberg Cheese (Baby Swiss).
Judges for this contest were John Jorg, former cheesemaker; Mike Felton, former cheesemaker; Doug Randles, cheese buyer; and Jonas Troyer, cheese buyer. All cheese was judged Grade A.
The Ohio State Fair contest, the second of the three contests, will be held Tuesday, July 14, 2015.

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Baby Swiss and Guggisberg in the News.

GUGGISBERG CHEESE NAMED GRAND CHAMPION
CHEESEMAKER FOR THE 3RD YEAR IN A ROW
SUGARCREEK, OHIO — On Wednesday, September 25th, 2013, the judging took place for the Ohio Swiss Festival’s cheese competition. Guggisberg Cheese took the Gold in the Swiss class with their Premium Swiss entry, and will be featured throughout the festival as the Grand Champion Cheesemaker.

The Ohio Swiss Festival cheese competition is the third and final of the three contests which determine the Ohio Swiss Cheese Association’s Grand Champion Cheesemaker through an accumulation of points. The manufacturer with the most points at the end of the three contests is dubbed Grand Champion Cheesemaker. Guggisberg Cheese was named the winner of the first contest, the Ohio Swiss Cheese Association’s Dairy Month Conest, held on June 19th, as well as Grand Champion at the 2013 Ohio State Fair contest on Tuesday, July 21st..

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GUGGISBERG TAKES FIRST PLACE
MILLERSBURG, OHIO — On Wednesday, June 19th, the first of three contests in the Ohio Swiss Cheese Association’s competition to determine this year’s Grand Champion Cheesemaker was held at Heini’s Cheese in Bunker Hill. Guggisberg Cheese, of Millersburg, was awarded first place to take the early lead in this year’s competition. Guggisberg’s Baby Swiss cheese also received 1st place in the “Open” category. The competition works on a point system. For each contest, the state’s Swiss manufacturers submit a sample to be judged, and each leg of the competition pays a set amount of points based on where their cheese is ranked by the judges. At the end of the three contests, the manufacturer with the most points is dubbed Grand Champion Cheesemaker. The next contest will be held for the Ohio State Fair in Columbus on Tuesday, July 23rd, and the final contest is to be held at the Swiss Festival in Sugarcreek on Wednesday, September 25th.

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GUGGISBERG TAKES GOLD AGAIN AT 2013 U.S. CHAMPIONSHIP CHEESE CONTEST
MILLERSBURG, OHIO — For the third consecutive year, Guggisberg Cheese has claimed the top spot at the 2013 United States Champion Cheese Contest, taking first place as along with third for their Premium Swiss cheese. The contest, which takes place every-other year, was held on March 12th through 13th at Lambeau Field in Green Bay, Wisconsin.

It is considered to be one of the most prestigious competitions in the country. More than 1,700 cheese submissions from 30 different states were split into one of 82 classes. Within each class, cheeses were scored on a 100-point scale by a panel consisting of professional judges from within the industry and universities. The three highest-scoring cheeses in each category, judged on flavor and body, were awarded trophies. The Guggisberg Cheese submissions were rindless 200-pound Swiss blocks, which finished 1st (Scoring 99.50), and 3rd (99.40).

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GUGGISBERG CHEESE TAKES FIRST PLACE AT 2011 OHIO STATE FAIR COMPETITION
MILLERSBURG, OHIO — On Tuesday, July 12th, 2011, the judging took place for the Ohio State Fair’s cheese competition. Guggisberg Cheese’s entry was pronounced the Fair Grand Champion, and by extension, will be featured in the Ohio State Fair’s Sale of Champions August 7th. The Sale of Champions will take place at the WCOL Celeste Center in Columbus, and the event auctions off the grand champions from every major category of the State Fair 4H competitions.

This will be the first time in the event’s history that the Grand Champion cheese will be included in the auction. The majority of the sale’s proceeds go to support Ohio’s 4H programs.

The Ohio State Fair cheese competition was the second of three contests that determine the Ohio Swiss Cheese Association’s Grand Champion Cheesemaker for 2011. Guggisberg Cheese also was named the winner of the first contest, held on June 8th. The third and final competition will be held at September’s Swiss Festival in Sugarcreek, Ohio.

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GUGGISBERG TAKES THE TOP FOUR SPOTS OF U.S. CHAMPIONSHIP CHEESE CONTEST
MILLERSBURG, OHIO — March 8th through 10th, the United States Championship Cheese Contest was held at Lambeau Field in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The contest is held every other year and is considered to be one of the most prestigious competitions in the country. 1,602 cheese submissions were split into one of 76 categories. Within each category, cheeses were scored on a 100 point scale by a panel consisting of professional judges from within the industry and universities.

The three highest scoring cheeses in each category were awarded trophies. On March 9th, the results of the scoring were made public. Guggisberg Cheese, who submitted four entries to the Swiss Styles category, claimed the four top spots. All four Swiss entries were produced at the factory in Sugarcreek, Ohio. Three of the submissions were rindless 200 pound Swiss blocks which finished 1st (Scoring 99.45), 2nd (99.3), and 4th (98.5). The other Swiss submission was an aged traditional Emmental Swiss block, which captured third place (99.1).

To go along with their excellent performance in the Swiss Styles category, Guggisberg also placed second in the “Pepper Flavored American Style Cheeses” with their Pepper Jack cheese, made at the Middlebury, Indiana plant.

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SIXTY YEARS OF GUGGISBERG CHEESE
MILLERSBURG, OHIO — Guggisberg Cheese, home of the Original Baby Swiss, is celebrating its 60th Anniversary in 2010. The celebration will be highlighted with an Anniversary Event on June 26th on the grounds of the Doughty Valley facilities just outside of Berlin on State Route 557. The public is encouraged to come out and join in on the celebration, which is being held as a token of the company’s appreciation for sixty years of support. The event will last from 11 AM to 5 PM, and is set to feature live musical entertainment, inflatable kids games, plenty of cheese, including a cheese eating competition, and much more.

Guggisberg Cheese was started in 1950, when Master Cheesemaker Alfred Guggisberg, who had learned the art of cheese making in his native country of Switzerland, came to Holmes County to make cheese from the local Amish farmers’ excess milk. The company gained fame when Baby Swiss was introduced to the public, and has been growing steadily ever since. Today,

Guggisberg Cheese, Inc. spans three plants across two states, and is one of the largest manufacturers of Swiss cheese in the United States.

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GUGGISBERG CHEESE NAMED GRAND CHAMPION!
MILLERSBURG, OHIO — Wednesday, September 30th, the third and final contest of the Ohio Swiss Cheese Association’s competition to determine this year’s Grand Champion Cheese Maker was held in Sugarcreek, Ohio, as part of this weekend’s Swiss Festival. Guggisberg Cheese was named the winner to sweep the competition and be declared Ohio’s Grand Champion Cheese Maker for the year 2009. Richard Guggisberg, the president of Guggisberg Cheese, will be accepting the award Friday, October 2nd, at 9:45 PM on Main Street in one of the final festival proceedings of the day.

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GUGGISBERG TAKES FIRST PLACE!
MILLERSBURG, OHIO — Wednesday, June 10th, the first of three contests in the Ohio Swiss Cheese Association’s competition to determine this year’s Grand Champion cheesemaker was held at Steiner Cheese in Baltic. The competition works on a point system. For each contest, the state’s Swiss manufacturers submit a sample to be judged, and each leg of the competition pays a set amount of points based on where their cheese is ranked by the judges. At the end of the three contests, the manufacturer with the most points is dubbed Grand Champion Cheesemaker. Guggisberg Cheese, of Millersburg, was awarded first place Wednesday to take the early lead in this year’s competition. The next contest will be held for the Ohio State Fair in Columbus on Tuesday, July 21st, and the final contest is to be held at the Swiss Festival in Sugarcreek on Wednesday, September 30th.

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GUGGISBERG CHEESE TAKES 1ST PLACE FOR THE 2ND CONSECUTIVE YEAR FOR ITS PREMIUM SWISS CHEESE AND 2ND PLACE FOR ITS BABY SWISS AT WORLD DAIRY EXPO CHAMPIONSHIP.
The 2008 World Dairy Expo will be held in Madison, WI September 30th - October 4th. More then 67,000 dairy industry enthusiasts make the trip to the World Dairy Expo each year. It is the international meeting place for the dairy industry. The Expo offers a combination of dairy cattle and exhibits in the world.

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DOWNLOAD OUR LATEST AWARDS
Click here to download Awards Sheet.

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GUGGISBERG CHEESE EARNS GOLD CERTIFICATE OF RECOGNITION WITH AN OVERALL EXCELLENT RATING OF 98.2%
Guggisberg Cheese, Inc has been recognized with a Gold Certificate for quality and food safety with the 2008 GMP and Food Safety System third party audit by Silliker. In today’s world food safety is very important and Guggisberg Cheese is committed to quality and strives for excellence.
Silliker Laboratories is a worldwide company that provides the food industry with services such as food analysis, microbial testing on food products, consulting and auditing services. The auditing services are designed to provide a non-bias look at programs and supply a tool for verification of these programs.

Guggisberg Cheese defines quality as the conformance to the customers’ needs and internal quality requirements. Quality standards are established through food safety programs, good manufacturing practices and employee commitment. Guggisberg Cheese takes every step possible to deliver the highest quality cheese. Dedication to excellence is their primary goal.

This audit rating states that this company has an outstanding program for maintaining and improving food safety and quality practices. Categories that were reviewed during the audit included Food Safety Systems, Quality Systems, Grounds- Building and Equipment, Pest Control, Employee Practices, Receiving-Storing and Shipping, Plant Sanitation, Processing, and Food Defense.

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GUGGISBERG CHEESE TAKES FIRST PLACE FOR ITS SWISS CHEESE AT WORLD DAIRY EXPO CHAMPIONSHIP
Richard Guggisberg attends awards ceremony in Madison Wisconsin The World Dairy Expo is held October 1st through October 6th in Madison WI. World Dairy Expo's 675-company trade show is an opportunity for producers to see cutting edge technology and the latest dairy equipment. It's an opportunity to go one-to-one with leading researchers, technical experts and national sales representatives from around the world. The Expo's strictly dairy focused trade show is the largest of its kind and it is all designed around helping today's producers become more profitable. Each year approximately 65,000 dairy enthusiasts make the trip to the World Dairy Expo. It's the international meeting place for the dairy industry. This Expo offers the most elite combination of dairy cattle and exhibits in the world.
Guggisberg Cheese has won a first place for its Swiss cheese in the cheese championship competition this year. Guggisberg Cheese's president, Richard Guggisberg has been invited to attend the World Dairy Expo on October 2nd in Madison.

Over 50 years ago Richard's parents Alfred and Margaret Guggisberg arrived from Switzerland and began producing cheese from fresh milk of the Doughty Valley. Over half a century later Guggisberg Cheese is still famous for their Original Baby Swiss along with their other Swiss Cheeses.