World Championship Cheese Contest Judging Now Underway

The 2022 World Championship Cheese Contest is officially underway! Now through Thursday, March 3, nearly 3,000 cheese, yogurt, butter, and whey entries will be evaluated by a team of internationally renowned judges. The event culminates with the exciting announcement of the 2022 World Champion Cheese live on WorldChampionCheese.org Thursday, March 3 at 2:00 p.m. (CT).

“The World Championship Cheese Contest is a one-of-a-kind opportunity for dairy processors to achieve global recognition, boost their business, and improve their craft with specific technical feedback,” said John Umhoefer, Executive Director of the Wisconsin Cheese Makers Association (WCMA), host of the biennial competition.

Hosted by WCMA since 1957, this biennial contest is the largest technical dairy products evaluation in the world. A Gruyère made in Bern, Switzerland by Michael Spycher of Bergkäserei Fritzenhaus for Gourmino AG ultimately became the 2020 World Champion Cheese. This year, entries have been submitted across 141 classes by cheesemakers from 29 countries worldwide and 33 U.S. states. This year’s judging team includes cheese graders, cheese buyers, dairy science professors, and researchers with more than 700 combined years of experience in the dairy processing industry. They hail from 16 countries and 13 U.S. states. Among the new Contest classes this year, the fast-growing favorite – cheese curds – make their official debut at the 2022 World Championship Cheese Contest with classes for both flavored and unflavored curds.

This year’s competition is closed to the public, but spectators worldwide are invited to visit WorldChampionCheese.org at 2:00 p.m. (CT) on Thursday, March 3 to join cheesemakers from all over the globe in witnessing the live reveal of the Top 20 Finalists and the 2022 World Champion Cheese!