French Broad Cheese Factory in Operation, Nov. 11, 1921

The Penrose Co-Op Cheese Co. Has Reorganized, Adopted a New Name and Opened Its Doors to Receive Milk Friday, Nov. 4th, 1921

By H.L. Wilson

The Penrose Co-Op Cheese Co., started making cheese Friday, November 4, and will in the future be known as the French Broad Co-op Cheese Co. C.F. Woodfin, C.V. Shufford, J.M. Talley and R.S. Boyd are the stock holders. W.L. Talley, President; R.S. Boyd, Cheese Maker, Secretary and Treasurer.

J.W. Lindley, Farm Agent, has spent several days in the last two months visiting farmers for the interest of the cheese factory and has worked up considerable interest among the farmers who wish to engage in dairying. H.W. Wilson of U.S. Department of Agriculture and State Department spent considerable time with Mr. Lindley while working on this project.

The cheese industry in North Carolina is growing but will make more progress in the future.

In Penrose we have a good farmers co-op cheese factory, a good mayor and good management. This can be had in any section of the country, but we have natural surroundings and conditions here in Western North Carolina that no other section of the country can have. That is, good cool, pure running spring water and cool nights in the warmest weather. This affords the producer the opportunity to produce an excellent quality of milk. With this, the cheese maker can be held responsible for an excellent quality of cheese.

The writer had talked with cheese buyers and cheese lovers from the far south states, and he finds that they don’t even know the cheese is being made in North Carolina. The consumers say that the best and about the only cheese that can be purchased in the South which one can depend on is New York State cheese, and it sells about 10 cents per pound above other brands. We will admit that New York makes good cheese, but no better than what is being made in North Carolina. The trouble is this, North Carolina has not been engaged in the cheese industry but a short time. The output is so small that only a few of the North Carolinians know that as good cheese, and I believe more uniform cheese as can be made any place is being made in North Carolina.

What we need is more dairy cows and more milk. To accomplish this, we must interest the farmers by sowing him that the dairy business will pay him good returns on his investment.

During the war exorbitant prices were paid for dairy products. Now that we are getting back to normal times, it seems like the next amount paid the producer is terribly small. However, when we get down to figures, they will show that selling milk to the cheese factory is more profitable to the rural farmer.

The French Broad Cheese Factory will be run strictly on co-operative basis, each patron sharing equal in profits and losses. A complete statement of the factory will be issued every month to every patron of the factory.

From the front page of the Brevard News, Transylvania County, N.C., Friday, November 11, 1921. To read more about cheese factories in Transylvania, go to https://nchistoryroom.blogspot.com/2019/06/cheese-factories.html, Transylvania County Library.