By DEBORAH BEHRENDS
Illinois Correspondent

BELVIDERE, Ill. — When Todd and Brenda Aves broke into the cheese business with two other farm families and their herd veterinarian four years ago, they had no idea the hardest part would be the marketing.

In that time, the other two families have dropped out of the partnership, leaving the Aveses and vet Brian Gerloff and his wife, Carol.

“The first family dropped out quickly. We had agreed that no one would use the recombinant bovine growth hormone. They disagreed and dropped out,” Gerloff said. “That decision was made for marketing purposes. We are hoping to appeal to consumers interested in a more natural product.”

The second family dropped out of the partnership earlier this year. “The return didn’t meet their expectations, let’s say,” Gerloff said.
While everyone involved knew what to expect on the production side – milking twice a day, every day, just like they always had – they didn’t have a clear understanding of the marketing side.
“We’re selling enough cheese that we buy the milk (produced by Todd Aves’ cattle) one or two days a month. We would like to get to the point where we’re buying it 10 or 12 days a month,” Gerloff explained.

The rest of the month, Aves’ milk is sold to the Midwest Dairy Cooperative. Gerloff said the business has grown steadily.
Like most businesses, their labor was volunteer for the first two years.

They finally were able to hire help in 2008.

The three varieties of cheese – cheddar, Swiss and Butterkase – are actually made by Edelweiss Town Hall Dairy in Monticello, Wis.
It sells its products at northern Illinois farmers’ markets throughout the growing season and several retail outlets, and to several upscale restaurants in the Chicago suburbs.

Although they are seasonal, “the markets have been good for us. We’ve moved product and increased brand awareness,” Gerloff said. He calls the marketing aspect of the business a “limiting factor,” because it takes so much time.

“Marketing is our biggest challenge,” Aves agreed.

Getting into the business of cheese added value to what he has done his entire life. He’s the fourth generation to work the farm, located between Kirkland and Belvidere.

He said his great-grandfather built the farm around 1900, and he’s never wanted to do anything else.

Aves milks 80-90 head every day with the help of one hired hand.
Gerloff said the decisions required to get into the cheese business came about from a desire to save some small family farms.
When he started practicing in McHenry and surrounding counties in 1985, there were more than 50 small dairy farms in Boone County, where Aves’ farm is located.

Today, there are 23 in Boone and Winnebago counties combined.
“I guess our thought, when we started the cheese, was that if we could capture some (more) of that retail dollar, we would make dairy farming more profitable,” Gerloff said. “Living next to seven million people, we felt like we could make it an asset.”
Eventually, the partners hope to have their own plant. For more information about Prairie Pure Cheese and where to find it, visit www.prairiepurcheese.com