The New York State Cheese Council 

seeks to strengthen the cheese community through  Education, Outreach, and Awareness.   

As part of this mission, we offered (2) $300 Professional Development Scholarships to applicants in 2025 in order to help enable our members to enhance their career path and/or knowledge base.  Funds could have been used towards events, coursework, and more. The scholarship was intended to offset some of the fees that might be associated with that, be it travel, lodging, admission fees, or any other fees involved with making the event accessible to applicants.  

Our 2025 winners have been selected and will go on to present their journeys at 

NYSCC’s FREE Virtual Winter Conference on Monday, January 26th at 5:00 PM Via Zoom.  

Read more about our winners below and follow along for more scholarship opportunities in the future!

 Emilia is an incredibly talented cheesemonger and educator who will be using her scholarship funds to support her participation in Team USA at the prestigious Mondial du Fromage competition in France this fall. In order to qualify for Team USA, Emilia and her teammate, (Courtney Johnson, owner of Street Cheese, LLC) first had to beat out fierce opposition at 2025 CMI Masters (Cheesemonger Invitational). Additionally, Courtney is only the 2nd American to qualify to compete in Mondial twice. Their side-by-side wins make them the first all-female team from the United States! In addition to her role of Sales and Marketing Manager for Formaticum , Emilia has actively volunteered for roles supporting the New York State Cheese Council from its humble beginnings – her participation has been an invaluable piece of our success. The New York State Cheese Council is PROUD to support Emilia and Team USA in their efforts to bring home the gold! Stay tuned to hear more about their journey when Emilia speaks at our Virtual Winter Conference.
 

Go TEAM!
 

Julia and her family are the owners of Mid-Knight Dairy is an 8th generational family farm (purchased in 1836). The dairy grew to 60 cows in 1982 under John & Laura Knight’s care, & grew again to 150 cows, as the LLC was formed to include daughter, Julia, & her husband Travis. The farm has received numerous awards for quality milk, quality bred Holsteins and Dairy Farm of Distinction. Today, 3 generations live & operate the farm. John's main responsibilities are crop management & machinery repairs, & is serving on the Steamburg Milk Producers board. Laura handles the farm financially & helps with calf care & child care, & is a past 4-H leader. Julia is chief cattle manager & farm manager. She is a member of the CCE Chautauqua County Dairy Committee, 4-H Dairy Cloverbud Leader, & a member of the Climate Adaptation & Mitigation Fellowship (CAMF) where farmers collaborate to find ways to adapt to climate changes & mitigate their impact on the environment. Travis’ responsibilities include cattle care, manure management, machinery repairs & crop management. Mid-Knight Dairy, LLC strives for high milk production, quality milk & high-quality forages. The farm makes the most of the limited land available in the area in order to grow abundant crops. It is situated on hill with a creek that runs through the property. Reducing soil erosion is a necessity. The farm uses cover crops to improve soil structure, reduce erosion, increase organic matter & water retention. The farm practices no-till corn planting & uses a no-till grain drill.

Mid-Knight Dairy’s next endeavor will be to branch out into the world of value-added dairy & will co-pack with Eden Valley Creamery. Julia plans to use her scholarship funds to further this mission by registering for courses at nearby Cornell. We are PROUD to support Mid-Knight Dairy’s journey!