The state of Wisconsin is well known for producing cheese. In fact, more cheese is produced in Wisconsin than in any other state. In addition, the state produces over 600 kinds of cheeses.

The first step in making good cheese is adding milk. It takes ten pounds of milk to make a pound of cheese. First, cheesemakers must weigh, heat, and clean the milk before adding bacteria called starter cultures to the milk for flavor. Then, an enzyme called rennet is added to the mixture to make it thick. Next, the mixture is cut into pieces to separate the liquid from the curds. Large curds are baked at lower temperatures to make ricotta or mascarpone cheeses, while smaller curds are cooked at higher temperatures to make parmesan or romano cheeses. Curds are cooked and stirred until they are firm. Different salting techniques are used to produce even more kinds of cheeses and the cheese is then pressed into different shapes. At this point, the cheese is ready to be packaged.