MADISON, WIS. –  An extensive group of experts from throughout the dairy industry will help determine which products stand out as the best of the best during the upcoming 2024 World Championship Cheese Contest.

The Wisconsin Cheese Makers Association (WCMA), host of the technical cheese, butter and yogurt competition, announced the 53 judges for the upcoming event include cheese graders, cheese buyers, dairy science professors and researchers from 19 countries.

The dairy pundits set to evaluate products March 5-7 at the Monona Terrace Community & Convention Center in Madison, Wis., are:

• Jill Allen, Tillamook County Creamery Association

• Greg Anderson, The Kroger Co.

• Dr. Gabriele Arlotti, CheeseItaly – Italy

• Ir. Maarten Bakker, Royal FrieslandCampina – Netherlands

• Marc Bates, Bates Consulting LLC

• KJ Burrington, American Dairy Products Institute

• Mirjana Curic-Bawden, Ph.D., Chr. Hansen

• Dominique Delugeau, Saputo

• Dr. Nana Farkye, Cal Poly

• Jessica Fernández Lopez, Lactography – Mexico

• Adrian Fowler, Fowlers Forest Dairies Ltd. – United Kingdom

• Dr. Mucio Furtado, IFF – Brazil

• Chad Galer, Dairy Management, Inc.

• Craig Gile, Cabot Creamery Cooperative

• Enda Howley, Ornua – Ireland

• John Jaeggi, Center for Dairy Research

• Luis Jiménez-Maroto, Center for Dairy Research

• Lars Johannes-Nielsen, Danish Dairy Board – Denmark

• Andy Johnson, Dairy Connection, Inc.

• Aileen Kacvinsky, Schuman Cheese

• Samir Kalit, Ph.D., University of Zagreb – Croatia

• Dr. Kerry Kaylegian, Penn State University

• Dieter Koch-Hartke, DMK Dairies – Germany

• Kyle Koll, Sargento Foods

• Drew Kordus, Great Lakes Cheese

• Laura Laehn, Masters Gallery Foods

• Dr. Susan Larson, Center for Dairy Research

• Terry Lensmire, Lensmire Dairy Consulting

• Dr. Arnoldo Lopez-Hernandez, University of Wisconsin-Madison

• Thierry Martin, Agropur – Canada

• Christophe Megevand, Schuman Cheese

• Lloyd Metzger, Valley Queen Cheese – South Dakota, USA

• Dr. Takayuki Miura, Nippon Veterinary & Life Sciences University – Japan

• Kate Neumeier Clarke, Wisconsin Aging & Grading Cheese

• Per Olesen, St. Clemens Food Products – Denmark

• Mike Pederson, Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (retired)

• Gurth Pretty, Lakeview Cheese Galore – Canada

• Miguel Rolo, Etapa Improvável – Portugal

• Dr. Giuseppe Rostiti, dairy technical sales consultant – Italy

• Dr. Francisco de Asís Ruiz Morales, Institute of Agricultural and Fisheries Research and Training – Spain

• David Satterness, Chr. Hansen (retired)

• Rosanne Sluijs, Cono Cheese Makers – Netherlands

• Russell Smith, Dairy Australia – Australia

• Dean Sommer, Center for Dairy Research

• Cathy Strange, Whole Foods Market

• Suresh Sutariya, IFF

• Jason Tarrant, Talley’s Group Limited – New Zealand

• Ernesto Toalombo, Colonia Láctica – Ecuador

• Stefan Truttmann, FROMARTE – Switzerland

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

• Eric Vorpahl, Masters Gallery Foods

• Dr. Richard Weiss, Obersteirische Molkerei – Austria

• Julie Winans, Chr. Hansen

WCMA also shared the names of nine established industry professionals who will oversee the 2024 World Championship Cheese Contest as members of the leadership team:

• Chief judge: Jim Mueller, Mueller Consulting

• Chief judge emeritus: Bob Aschebrock

• Chief judge emeritus: Bill Schlinsog

• Assistant chief judge: Tim Czmowski, Agropur (retired)

• Assistant chief judge: Stan Dietsche, Oshkosh Cold Storage

• Assistant chief judge: Josef Hubatschek, ALPMA (retired)

• Assistant chief judge: Mariana Marques de Almeida, Ms. J and Co.

• Assistant chief judge: Sandy Toney, Masters Gallery Foods

• Director of logistics: Randy Swensen, Wisconsin Aging & Grading Cheese

The judging sessions open to the public at Monona Terrace Community & Convention Center in Madison, Wis., are set for March 5 and 6. The livestream of the announcement of the top 20 cheeses and the world champion will follow on March 7 at 2 p.m. CT.

WCMA has hosted the World Championship Cheese Contest since 1957. At the most recent edition of the competition in 2022, Gourmino Le Gruyère, made by Michael Spycher of Mountain Dairy Fritzenhaus in Bern, Switzerland, won the top honor with a score of 98.423.