A group of six cheese retailers and cheese marketing specialists from Thailand will be visiting the Center for Dairy Research at UW-Madison Jan. 18-20. This is part of an intensive two-week training program to learn about artisanal and gourmet cheeses.
The program, funded through a Cochran Fellowship Program grant from USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service, also involves visits to dairy farms small and large, cheese factories, specialty cheese shops, large retail grocery chains, restaurants and bars.
The visit focuses on training and networking, helping the Thai fellows build relationships with manufacturers, companies, distributors and government partners. The overall objective of the program is to expand U.S. cheese exports to Thailand.
The proposal and itinerary for the group’s visit, first announced in February 2022, was developed by the College of Agricultural and Life Sciences, CDR and the Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection, with input from Wisconsin cheese industry representatives.
Training activities at CDR will include:
- Sensory activities in the Culinary Applications Lab, such as cheese tastings and evaluation
- Demonstration activities in the Pilot Plant, including Swiss cheese and specialty/artisan cheese making
- Lectures on the basics of cheese science and the cheesemaking process
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