Maytag Dairy Farms
Encyclopedia
Maytag Dairy Farms is a manufacturer of blue cheese
and other cheese
s based in Newton, Iowa
. It was established in 1941 by Frederick Louis Maytag II
.
, son of Maytag Corporation founder Frederick Louis Maytag I, formed a dairy farm in 1919 to produce milk for the family and company.
In the early 1940s, Frederick Louis Maytag II
with his brother, Robert Maytag, created a cheese plant and storage caves on the farm to take advantage of a process developed by Iowa State University
researchers to make blue cheese out of cow's milk instead of traditional sheep's milk
. On October 11, 1941, the first wheels of Maytag Blue Cheese were formed.
Blue cheese
Blue cheese is a general classification of cow's milk, sheep's milk, or goat's milk cheeses that have had cultures of the mold Penicillium added so that the final product is spotted or veined throughout with blue, blue-gray or blue-green mold, and carries a distinct smell, either from that or...
and other cheese
Cheese
Cheese is a generic term for a diverse group of milk-based food products. Cheese is produced throughout the world in wide-ranging flavors, textures, and forms....
s based in Newton, Iowa
Newton, Iowa
Newton is a city in and the county seat of Jasper County, Iowa, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 15,254. It is the home of Maytag Dairy Farms and was formerly home to the Maytag Corporation's corporate headquarters until the Whirlpool Corporation acquired it in 2006...
. It was established in 1941 by Frederick Louis Maytag II
Frederick Louis Maytag II
Frederick Louis Maytag II was president, and later, the chairman of the Maytag Company. In the early 1940s, he and Robert E...
.
History
The farm got its start when Elmer Henry MaytagElmer Henry Maytag
Elmer Henry Maytag was the Maytag Corporation president starting in 1926. He also founded the Maytag Dairy Farms.-Biography:...
, son of Maytag Corporation founder Frederick Louis Maytag I, formed a dairy farm in 1919 to produce milk for the family and company.
In the early 1940s, Frederick Louis Maytag II
Frederick Louis Maytag II
Frederick Louis Maytag II was president, and later, the chairman of the Maytag Company. In the early 1940s, he and Robert E...
with his brother, Robert Maytag, created a cheese plant and storage caves on the farm to take advantage of a process developed by Iowa State University
Iowa State University
Iowa State University of Science and Technology, more commonly known as Iowa State University , is a public land-grant and space-grant research university located in Ames, Iowa, United States. Iowa State has produced astronauts, scientists, and Nobel and Pulitzer Prize winners, along with a host of...
researchers to make blue cheese out of cow's milk instead of traditional sheep's milk
Sheep milk
Sheep's milk is the milk of domestic sheep. Though not widely drunk in any modern culture, sheep's milk is commonly used to make cultured dairy products. Well-known cheeses made from sheep milk include the Feta of Greece, Roquefort of France, Manchego from Spain, the Pecorino Romano , the Pecorino...
. On October 11, 1941, the first wheels of Maytag Blue Cheese were formed.
Present day
Maytag Dairy Farms is now owned by eleven members of the Maytag family and is no longer connected with the Maytag Corporation. The dairy produces approximately one million pounds of blue cheese per year and its annual gross sales total $5 million.External links
- Maytag Dairy Farms
- The big cheese, article in the Des Moines RegisterDes Moines RegisterThe Des Moines Register is the daily morning newspaper of Des Moines, Iowa, in the United States. A separate edition of the Register is sold throughout much of Iowa.-History:...
(November 28, 2004) - Little Big Cheese: Maytag's Growing Niche Market, story on NPR (January 4, 2005)