Meet Emily Montgomery
Emily Montgomery is the Managing Partner and Cheesemaker for Calkins Creamery.
Emily’s experience with dairy began during her childhood as the third of four children born to a small dairy farmer, Bill Bryant.
Upon graduation from High School, Emily was accepted into the Pennsylvania State University’s undergraduate Food Science program at the main campus in Happy Valley.
In addition to completing her bachelor’s degree, Emily worked in production at the university creamery. During college Emily also interned at Verdelli Farms, a fresh produce company near Hershey, PA, learning more about food production and sanitation.
After graduation, Emily gained employment as a quality assurance lead at Nestle USA’s ice cream facility in Laurel, Maryland, focusing on GMPs, environmental surveillance, net contents, and HACCP.
After two years at Laurel, Emily moved with her husband to Bakersfield, California, and began working in research and development at Bolthouse Farms.
At Bolthouse, Emily gained a great deal of knowledge about fresh vegetable and juice beverages, including ultra-clean environments for cold-filling.
Around 2005, Emily attended a short cheesemaking course at California Polytechnic University in San Luis Obispo and began considering starting a small cheesemaking company in Pennsylvania.
Later that year, Emily returned to her family’s farm. She began designing and constructing a small, value-added dairy facility to boost the family farm’s bottom line. During construction, Emily was the Quality Assurance Supervisor at Kraft Foods’ Breakstone Sour Cream and Cottage Cheese factory in Walton, New York.
While with Kraft, Emily received her milk-receiving license and continued building her knowledge around the production of cultured dairy products.
In 2007, Calkins Creamery started cheese production, and Emily ceased employment with Kraft.
Fifteen years later, Calkins Creamery has grown to serve multiple customers in the Northeastern United States. Emily and her team have created an entire line of award-winning raw and pasteurized farmstead cheeses.
“My dad and brother’s goal is to produce the highest quality milk to give us the ability to make the best artisan cheese. Every aspect of making cheese has been successful because of my family and our team of employees.
I know what the cows are eating and that the cows are being well-cared for.
When you make the cheese in the Creamery and look out to the pasture and see the cows grazing, it makes the long days worth it, and you know you are making the freshest cheese possible.”