BIO|FOOD|TECH Centre
June 6-7-8, 2012
Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island
With the success of "The Art and Science of Cheese Making" course offered in Leduc, Alberta in February 2012, the CDC is proud to have repeated that success by offering the course in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island June 6, 7, 8, 2012. With the help of the BIO|FOOD|TECH Centre, the CDC recruited Prof. Art Hill from the University of Guelph, and cheese maker Ruth Klahsen from Montforte Dairy in Stratford, Ontario to present a three day course, mixing the science behind cheese making with the passion and art of the craft.
Each day consisted of classroom sessions reviewing the science involved in cheese making and visits to the cheese plant for hands on learning.
Prof. Hill provided participants with an overview of cheese making technology including the origins of cheese 
making, raw milk quality, cheese ingredients, ripening principles and cheese safety.
Artisanal cheese maker Ruth Klahsen lead participants through a "hands on" manufacturing process for making Gouda, Feta, Camembert and Cheddar. She reviewed warming and culturing, coagulation, cutting the curd, cooking, and molding, pressing and brining the cheese. As well, participants learned about storage and aging, plant sanitation, and good manufacturing techniques.
"Had a wonderful experience with instructors and
colleagues. Really loved the fact that the science (Art)
was challenged by "adventurous, out of the box"
techniques (Ruth). This was a healthy demonstration of
the food art form in action."
Michael Clothier,
Farmers Cooperative Dairy
"Thank you Art and Ruth for a wonderful, informative course!"
Randy MacIntosh
Farmers Cooperative Dairy
"The Best!"
Mathieu Gallant,
Island Artisan Cheesehouse
Photos: PEI Gov't Photo/Brian L. Simpson