Emmi Buys Cowgirl Creamery Corporation as Looks to Grow Artisan Cheese Business

17 May 2016 --- Switzerland’s largest milk processor Emmi has acquired California-based dairy company Cowgirl Creamery Corporation, its latest in a string of dairy related acquisitions in the state.

Emmi has bought the artisan cheese maker and its food distribution company Tomales Bay Foods for an undisclosed sum.

Emmi chief executive Urs Riedener said: “Tomales Bay Foods and Cowgirl Creamery are an excellent addition to our portfolio of sustainably produced premium speciality cheeses in the US. “

“Together with Cypress Grove Chevre and Redwood Hill, the two companies will form a powerful network for extraordinary dairy products in California.”

The latest acquisition comes as Emmi earmarks international growth, where it generates 44 percent of its sales, as a key plank of its strategy.

Emmi said it will benefit from the strong voice of the “Cowgirls” in the American artisan cheese community. Its products include soft, semi-hard and aged artisan organic cheeses. 

Its most popular cheese is called Mr Tam, named after Mount Tamalpais in California.

Cowgirl was founded in 1997 by Sue Conley and Peggy Smith, who learned cheese-making from scratch, in Point Reyes, California.

Both founders are to remain with the company in executive roles.

Emmi has made a number of other dairy businesses in California.

Last year, it acquired Sebastopol’s Redwood Hill Farm & Creamery, a goat milk processor and cheese maker.

In 2010, it acquired Arcata goat cheese maker Cypress Grove Chevre.