EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. – Cheeses produced at five Prairie Farms plants collected medals at the 2022 American Cheese Society Judging and Competition.

Shullsburg Creamery, a cheese plant Prairie Farms operates in Shullsburg, Wis., brought home multiple medals. Shullsburg Creamery Jack ’n Dill got second place in the open category for cheeses with flavor added (all milks and mixed milks). Its Cranberry Chipotle Cheddar took third in the same category. Shullsburg Creamery’s Jalapeno Cheese Curds earned third place in the cheese curds with flavor added category.

Prairie Farms plants in Mindoro, Wis., and Faribault, Minn., produced second-place finishers in blue mold cheeses categories. The Mindoro Collection Blue Cheese Wheel placed in the rindless blue-veined (cow’s milk) group, while the Caves of Fairbault Felix Blue Cheese was runner-up in the blue-veined with rind or external coating (cow’s milk) category.

Cheeses made at the Shullsburg, Wis., and Luana, Iowa, plants secured two of the three medals in the category for Emmental-style with eye formation (cow’s milk). The Alpine Collection Baby Swiss Wheel took second, while Prairie Farms’ Swiss was third.

The Neufchatel Cheese produced at the Luana facility also picked up a second-place medal in the low fat/low salt cheeses category.

"We are fortunate to have an experienced team of dedicated cheese makers producing award-winning cheeses our consumers can enjoy," said Mike Christensen, Prairie Farms’ cheese division vice president of sales. "All of which would not be possible without our farmer community providing us with the highest quality milk."

In total, 380 awards were given out at the ACS competition, which allotted gold, silver and bronze medals in 120 cheese categories. A complete list of the awards bestowed this year can be found online at the ACS website.