About Us
Prairie Pure Cheese was formed in July 2004 as a partnership between three families in Belvidere, Illinois. We work with a small cheese plant in southern Wisconsin-Edelweiss Town Hall Dairy, Monticello, Wisconsin. Our first batch of cheese was available in September of 2004, and was marketed and sold in seasonal outlets across Illinois. To date, approximately 15,000 pounds of cheese has been sold.
Our Families
Todd and Brenda Aves milk approximately 90 cows on the family farm south of Belvidere. The farm has been in the Aves family for over 100 years.
Dale and Lisa Fitzgerald come from many generations of dairy farmers. Their 80-cow herd, just outside of Belvidere, is consistently one of the top-producing herds in northern Illinois.
Brian and Carole Gerloff of Woodstock are the third set of partners. Brian is the herd veterinarian for the two dairy farms. He grew up on a dairy farm in the Woodstock area that has been in the Gerloff family for more than 100 years.
Our Process
We at Prarie Pure Cheese work with a Master Cheesemaker and his own recently renovated cheese plant. This plant and process combines state of the art technology with traditional skill and care to produce artisanal cheeses of top quality. Our milk is transported to the cheese plant where it is stored in its own silo overnight. Early the next morning, it is processed as its own batch into our cheese, so in less than 24 hours, the milk is harvested and manufactured into cheese. Our partners take the utmost care in producing quality milk from their dairy herds, which is reflected in the taste and quality of our cheese.
Our Cows
Our cows are fed well balanced diets using primarily homegrown grains and forages. The cows have access to pasture, although they are not fed only pasture or grazed intensively. The quality of the milk is determined by the quality of the diet, and the care with which the cows are milked.