Elite Global Judging Team to Evaluate 3,375 Entries at the 2026 World Championship Cheese Contest

MADISON, WI – The Wisconsin Cheese Makers Association (WCMA), proud host of the World Championship Cheese Contest®, today announced the distinguished panel of 56 dairy industry experts selected to evaluate an impressive 3,375 entries at the 2026 competition. 

Dairy manufacturers in 24 countries, 33 U.S. states, and Puerto Rico have submitted their products in competition for the coveted title of World Champion. The 2026 World Championship Cheese Contest® will take place March 3–5 at the Monona Terrace Community & Convention Center in Madison, Wisconsin. Preliminary rounds of judging will be open to the public from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. on Tuesday, March 3, and Wednesday, March 4. 

“This remarkable volume of entries reflects the global prestige and competitive excellence of the World Championship Cheese Contest®,” said Kirsten Strohmenger, WCMA Contest Director. “The single gold, silver and bronze medallion earned in each contest class is a trusted mark of exceptional quality and craftsmanship. Entrants know and respect the rigorous technical standards of this competition.” 

This year’s judging panel includes cheese graders, buyers, dairy science professors, and researchers from 22 countries, 12 U.S. states, and Puerto Rico. They are: 

·         Valerie Arechiga of Glanbia Dairy Nutrition – Idaho, USA 

·         Gabriele Arlotti of CheeseItaly – Italy 

·         Maarten Bakker of Royal FrieslandCampina – Netherlands 

·         Marc Bates of Bates Consulting – Oregon, USA 

·         Larry Bell of LBell Consulting – Wisconsin, USA 

·         Ted Brown of Cabot Creamery Cooperative – Vermont, USA 

·         K.J. Burrington of American Dairy Products Institute – Wisconsin, USA 

·         Oksana Chernova of Ardis Group and ProCheese Academy – Ukraine 

·         Bénédicte Coudé of Ingredion – New Jersey, USA 

·         Dominique Delugeau of Saputo Cheese USA – Wisconsin, USA 

·         Mike Dudas of Schuman Cheese – New Jersey, USA 

·         Dr. Múcio Furtado of IFF – Brazil 

·         Chad Galer of Dairy Management, Inc. – Illinois, USA 

·         Mark Gardner of Fonterra – Australia 

·         Craig Gile of Tree of Life – Washington, USA 

·         Enda Howley of Ornua – Ireland 

·         Chris Huisman of Velder – Netherlands 

·         Kory Hyvonen of Kory’s Cheese Sales – Wisconsin, USA 

·         Luis Jiménez-Maroto of the Center for Dairy Research – Wisconsin, USA 

·         Lars Johannes Nielsen of the Danish Dairy Board – Denmark 

·         Aileen Kacvinsky of Schuman Cheese – Wisconsin, USA 

·         Samir Kalit, Ph.D. of the University of Zagreb – Croatia 

·         Dieter Koch-Hartke of DMK Deutsches Milchkontor GmbH– Germany 

·         Kyle Koll of Sargento Foods – Wisconsin, USA 

·         Drew Kordus of Great Lakes Cheese – Wisconsin, USA 

·         Dr. Arnoldo Lopez-Hernandez of the University of Wisconsin – Madison – Mexico/USA 

·         Thierry Martin of Agropur – Canada 

·         Christophe Megevand, Consultant – France 

·         Eric Meredith of Jimbo’s – California, USA 

·         Lloyd Metzger of Valley Queen Cheese – South Dakota, USA 

·         Peter Mitchell of Coombe Castle – United Kingdom 

·         Takayuki Miura, Ph.D., of Nippon Veterinary & Life Sciences University – Japan 

·         Gina Mode of the Center for Dairy Research – Wisconsin, USA 

·         Per Olesen of Bornholms Andelsmejeri – Denmark 

·         Michael Pederson of the Wisconsin Master Cheesemaker Program – Wisconsin, USA 

·         Dr. Leyda Ponce de León of the University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez – Puerto Rico 

·         Pablo Rivero of Grupo Entrepinares – Spain 

·         Miguel Rolo of Etapa Improvável – Portugal 

·         Francisco de Asís Ruiz Morales, Ph.D., of the Andalusian Institute of Agriculture and Fisheries Research – Spain 

·         Roland Sahli of Gourmino – Switzerland 

·         Stelios Sarantis of Hellenic Dairies – Greece 

·         Christian Schmutz of FROMARTE – Switzerland 

·         Franco Sessa of Grand Gourmand – New Zealand 

·         Russell Smith of Dairy Australia – Australia 

·         Ben Smith of Hilmar Cheese – California, USA 

·         Dean Sommer of the Center for Dairy Research – Wisconsin, USA 

·         Sarah Stewart of Neal’s Yard Dairy – United Kingdom 

·         Cathy Strange of Whole Foods Market – Texas, USA 

·         Ernesto Toalombo of Colonia Láctica – Ecuador 

·         Don Tribby of IFF – Missouri, USA 

·         Stefan Truttmann of FROMARTE – Switzerland 

·         Milna Tudor Kalit, Ph.D., of the University of Zagreb – Croatia 

·         Pratishtha Verma of the Center for Dairy Research – Wisconsin, USA 

·         Eric Vorpahl of Masters Gallery Foods – Wisconsin, USA 

·         Richard Weiβ of Obersteirische Molkerei eGen – Austria 

·         Julie Winans of Novonesis – Utah, USA 

The expert judges will evaluate all entries of cheese, butter, cultured products, and dry dairy ingredients across 150 classes. Each product will be carefully assessed and scored based on technical and sensory attributes including flavor, body, texture, salt, color, finish, packaging, and more.  

Judging will be overseen by the World Championship Cheese Contest® leadership team, known as the “Red Hats” for their signature Contest attire. Led by Chief Judge Jim Mueller of Mueller Consulting, the team includes Assistant Chief Judges Tim Czmowski of ISG Engineering, Stan Dietsche of Oshkosh Cold Storage, Josef Hubatschek of ALPMA (retired), John Jaeggi of the Center for Dairy Research, Mariana Marques de Almeida of Ms. J and Co., Sandy Toney of Masters Gallery Foods (retired), Jill Allen of Tillamook, and Contest Director of Logistics Randy Swensen of Wisconsin Aging & Grading Cheese. 

Gold, silver, and bronze medals will be awarded to the three highest-scoring entries in each class. Championship Round judging and the announcement of the 2026 World Champion will be closed to the public; however, fans around the world can watch the livestream at WorldChampionCheese.org and Facebook.com/WorldChampionshipCheeseContest at 2:00 p.m. (CT) on Thursday, March 5. 

Hosted biennially by WCMA since 1957, the World Championship Cheese Contest® is the largest technical dairy products evaluation in the world. In 2024, judges evaluated 3,302 entries across 142 classes. That year’s top honor was awarded to Hornbacher, crafted by four-time World Champion cheesemaker Michael Spycher at Mountain Dairy Fritzenhaus for Gourmino AG in Bern, Switzerland, earning an exceptional score of 98.98 out of 100.