Great Lakes Cheese

Employee size

1,001-5,000

Organization type

Privately Held

Headquarters

Hiram, OH

Founded

1958

UEI

GY1QGNZLW5D9

CAGE

1CN67

Founded in 1958 by Swiss immigrant Hans Epprecht as a neighborhood cheese-delivery business, Great Lakes Cheese now manufactures and packages natural and processed cheese for customers across the country. The privately owned Epprecht Family company operates nine plants across six states, with more than 4,700 employee-owners participating in an Employee Stock Ownership Plan established in 1998. Its award-winning products and sizable national network reflect a business built around long-term family ownership and shared responsibility.

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  Laubscher Cheese CompanyFounded in 1957, Laubscher Cheese Company is a family-operated cheese business that supplies commercial customers and walk-in buyers, combining cheese distribution with in-house cutting and shredding. The company’s history began with founder Bob Laubscher’s cheese-making work, and it is now led by third-generation grandson Kevin Watts, with the fourth generation involved in daily operations. Its approximately 40 employees support the company’s cutting room, shredding room, transportation department, and other operations.MERCER, PA
• Guggisberg Cheese, IncFounded in Ohio’s Amish Country in 1950 by Swiss immigrant Alfred Guggisberg, Guggisberg Cheese makes Swiss cheese and is best known as the creator of Original Baby Swiss. Alfred developed the milder, creamier style after experimenting with local milk, and his son Richard now leads the company. The cheese maker has grown into one of the largest Swiss cheese manufacturers in the United States, with national and international recognition including U.S. Grand Champion honors in 2015 and 2019.MILLERSBURG, OH
• Miceli Dairy Products CompanySince 1923, Miceli Dairy Products Company has made Italian cheeses in Cleveland, beginning with 15-year-old John Miceli selling ricotta and mozzarella from a Model-T pickup truck. Today the family-owned business remains guided by Miceli children and grandchildren, carrying generations-old recipes into a nationally recognized cheese company.CLEVELAND, OH
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  BelGioioso Cheese, IncFounded in 1979, BelGioioso Cheese, Inc. is a privately held, family-owned producer of specialty Italian cheeses based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. The company says its cheesemaking tradition draws on recipes passed down through generations, and it makes cheese from fresh milk collected from nearby farms.GLENVILLE, NY