LaClare to acquire Heartland Dairy Creamery

MALONE – Over the next several weeks, LaClare Family Creamery is acquiring the assets of Missouri-based Heartland Creamery.

Terms of the transaction between the goat cheese makers were undisclosed.   

According to its website, Heartland Creamery is a 17,000-acre farmland that is home to over 2,100 goats, with “a current daily production capability of 3,000 pounds of handcrafted fresh and aged cheese.”

LaClare Family Creamery traces its roots back to 1978 when Larry and Clara Hedrich started a small goat farm on the outskirts of Chilton. The family-operated business has grown to include a processing plant, retail shop and restaurant at its current location in Malone, and has received numerous national and international awards for its products. 

“Coupling Heartland’s processing with our highly regarded goat milk supply will allow us to expand our current product lines,” said Katie Fuhrmann, LaClare’s cheesemaker. 

Both LaClare and Heartland have been on the ground floor of the growing goat cheese market. In 2015, each was widely recognized at the U.S. Champion Cheese Contest. Heartland won a silver medal in the goat cheddar class and LaClare earned the Runner Up “Best of Show” title for its “American Originals” recipe.

“Charlie Sharpe took a ‘family-first’ approach to his workforce when he launched Heartland Creamery in 2005. And that’s certainly another value we share,” said Larry Hedrich, co-founder of LaClare. “While Charles is no longer with us, his vision and values are something we’re privileged to continue.”

Wisconsin is one of the top states in the U.S. for goat milk production. Earlier this year, LaClare Family Creamery expanded its product offerings, upgraded its processing capacity, recruited nationally recognized affineur David Rogers and had its cheese prominently featured in a February episode of ABC’s “The Bachelor.” 

Learn more at laclarefamilycreamery.com. For more information, contact Katie Fuhrman at 920-670-0051.