Attention to detail makes a tasty business

By Jennifer M. Latzke

It all began as a hobby for Russell Gift of Hardesty, Okla.

Gift grew up on his family dairy in Oklahoma. For years he'd thought about learning to make cheese from the family's dairy, but the opportunity never came.

Years later, a grown-up Gift had a small flock of dairy goats as a hobby. The goats began producing more milk than his family could drink, and Gift decided to finally try his hand at cheese-making. Those first stove-top batches of goat cheese were such a hit with Gift's family and friends that Gift and his wife Denise decided to pursue an artisan cheese business with Gift's brother Nick and his wife Donna.

The Gift family purchased an established artisan cheese factory and dairy cow herd from the Tharp family of Hardesty one and a half years ago. And today, Hardesty Cheese produces about 1,000 pounds of cheese each week, from its herd of 60 dairy cows.

High quality cheese

Hardesty Cheese has a simple goal: Produce the highest quality, all natural artisan cheese for their consumers. And, it all begins with the nutrition of the Gift cattle.

"We try to keep our cows on pasture as much as possible," Gift said. "We run our dry cows on grass and feed corn and soybeans with a little cotton seed and free-choice alfalfa." The Gifts choose not to give their cattle steroids or feed additives so that their cheese can be marketed as all-natural. And, as a way to keep capital within the small community of Hardesty, they purchase their feed from local businesses.

"Our 30 head of milking cows will produce about 800 to 1,000 pounds of milk each day," Gift said. Sometimes, if they need to supplement their milk production they may buy milk from a local dairyman who also keeps his cattle off of steroids and feed additives to comply with the Gifts' requirements. Hardesty Cheese will process about three and a half 280-pound batches of cheese each week, and in many different varieties depending on the market's needs. Because the business is small, they have some leeway in which varieties they need to make at any time.

Product development

It's this flexibility that makes Hardesty Cheese a favorite in many small town grocery stores in the Oklahoma Panhandle and southwest Kansas region. In order to get his cheese onto grocery shelves, though, the Gifts had to do some leg work and research.

"We watched the markets and what would sell," he said. "We'd look at what was available in the store and then look at what we could do to make the cheese a little different and a lot better." One way to set themselves apart, was to use only whole milk in their cheese production.

"We use whole milk in our cheese," Gift said. "It makes for a different texture of cheese, but the cheese has more flavor because of it. Making whole milk into cheese takes time, though."

Flavor development was sometimes planned, and sometimes by accident. Gift said he has tried to learn to make cheese with attention to people's tastes and what is marketable. All experimental varieties are taste-tested in house before they make it to market, he added.

"We tried a smoked cheddar and got something else entirely," he said with a grin. Another cheese, which uses bread-and-butter jalapeno peppers to add a kick, came about when Gift had a batch of experimental goat cheese that he wanted to pep up. "I had a small jar of these jalapenos and they really tasted great in the goat cheese," he said.

Other cheeses came about in response to market pressures. For example, 70 percent of the company's cheeses are tailored to the Hispanic market, which is emerging in the Hardesty area. They have a Queso Fresco, which is a fresh Mexican style cheese, and an Asadero, a Mexican style mozzarella that melts well, Gift said. They also offer a cheese called "Top-notch Cheddar" that has a touch of garlic and chives and was made for use on baked potatoes or in grilled cheese sandwiches.

To keep consistent with the company's all-natural commitment, even the ingredients and additives to the cheeses are natural.

"We use nothing that's synthetic in our process," Gift said. "They're just simple flavorings and all natural." And, as a way to help other small agri-businesses in the region, the Gifts are looking into purchasing fresh herbs from a Moscow, Kan., grower.

The artisan process

The cheese-making process is similar to that of larger companies--just scaled down to match the needs of Hardesty Cheese. Gift's day begins at 5:30 a.m. by pasteurizing the milk. From then it's a 12- to 14-hour process of heating and cooling the milk batch to various proprietary specifications. Once the heating and cooling and adding of ingredients is complete, the cheese goes into hoops and is sent to the cooler, where it will stay for up to 24 hours before it is cut, vacuum-sealed and shipped. Any waste from the cheesemaking process goes to a lagoon, where it is used for crop fertilizer, Gift said.

The Gifts have one hired hand, Evalio Perez, who immigrated to the U.S. from Mexico and brought his dairy and cheese-making experience with him. The whole family each has a role in the business, from milking the cows, to cleaning equipment and making and shipping the cheese. "We're really a family operation," Gift said.

And, of course, the Gifts comply with Oklahoma Department of Agriculture regulations regarding their dairy and cheese operations. "Everything is stainless steel and according to Oklahoma State regulations," Gift said. "We are inspected on a regular basis and have an ODA permit for the dairy and one for the plant." It's interesting to note that Oklahoma's food regulations are as strict as the federal government's, which means Hardesty Cheese can be sold across state lines without any major hassles.

Market development

Once the Gifts had a slate of cheeses developed for retail, and had completed the steps for certification, the next hurdle was to find outlets to sell their cheese.

"I just began by cold-calling on stores with samples," Gift said. Now, about half of Hardesty Cheese's business is through small "mom and pop" stores in small towns who want something unique to compete against the bigger chain stores and draw customers. Hardesty Cheese also markets 10-pound blocks of cheese to area restaurants, and is developing other convenience items, such as their "Slim Moos" for sale in gas stations and convenience stores. The Gifts also offer their cheeses for sale through the Internet. "I'd say about less than one percent of our sales are from the web," Gift said.

"We have a cheese of the month club available, too, so that customers can buy our cheeses year-round," he added. The most popular season for sales at Hardesty Cheese is the holidays, and the Gifts find they make half of their total sales for the year in the period from October to December.

Shipping is handled by the family themselves, since most retail outlets are within driving distance of Hardesty. "We deliver by car in coolers now, but we're looking at other options," Gift said. Gift said he'd also like to work with other small food businesses in the area to market products together and create a buzz for local, home-grown foods.

The future is wide open for Hardesty Cheese. Gift said his family would like to expand the factory to include a second vat, and maybe add some other products to their lineup.

"We don't want to get too much bigger, though," he said. "We'd just like to expand our building and the plant and double the size of it so we'd have enough room to do multiple batches at the same time."

"The power of local customers means that if they have a problem with our product, we can be there quickly to fix it for them," Gift said. And, a small plant like Hardesty Cheese, can take the time to make a higher quality artisan cheese and meet the needs of its customers, he added. It's a lot of the company's success--meeting the needs of small town consumers who want quality and taste.

Jennifer M. Latzke can be reached by phone at 620-227-1807 or jlatzke@hpj.com.

Date: 11/30/06

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