This week on the FarmHouse, a podcast by Lancaster Farming, we're talking with Christine Leonard, a Minnesota dairy farmer and owner of The Grater Good, which specializes in cheese plates and cheese classes.
Leonard is a sixth-generation farmer whose farm has been passed down through the women's side of her family for the last three generations.
Before coming to work on the family farm, Leonard spent time at an artisan creamery where she learned about making cheese. By the time she joined the family farm, she knew cheese was a good opportunity to diversify operations, and she launched The Grater Good.
Leonard launched the business with curated cheese boards, but soon branched out into classes and tastings.
"Slowly my business has expanded from just the cheese and charcuterie boards to a lot of cheese tasting and education classes. So just like people can do a flight of wine, they can do a flight of cheese," Leonard said.
Leonard uses those tastings not only to introduce people to cheeses they may not have tried before, but to talk to them about the dairy industry and put herself forward as an ag ambassador.
"I like to ask before I even start the class, 'How many of you guys know a farmer?' And you know, usually it's crickets," Leonard said. "Not a lot of people have that connection to agriculture anymore. And so I always like to say, 'Now you know at least one farmer. You know me.'"
After that introduction, Leonard said she's been able to field plenty of questions from her customers, who are often curious about how the dairy industry works.
Though her days are busy between running the farm and The Grater Good, Leonard said she's happy to have found her niche in the local dairy industry.
"I really find a lot of fulfillment through my work, both the dairying side and the cheesemongering side," she said. "That's the thing about dairy farming, right? It's a lifestyle. And my Grater Good work just fits right into that as well."
Listen to the interview with Becky Collins Brookes mentioned in this episode.
Read about the history of charcuterie boards.
Behind the Scenes: Making Pretzels the Old Fashioned Way at Martin's Pretzels
Learn more about our new podcast, Farmer Wants a Wife Afterparty.
