Pt. Reyes Farmstead Cheese Co.

FARMLAND: 700 acres in Point Reyes, about 65 miles from the Ferry Plaza Farmers Market

PEOPLE: 25 full-time employees, including all 6 members of the Giacomini family, run the farm and business; Monte McIntyre is the primary cheesemaker

FARM HISTORY/PHILOSOPHY: The Giacomini commitment to producing superior farmstead dairy products began over 100 years ago in the mountains of Italy. Today Bob Giacomini and his family continue the family tradition with their Point Reyes Original Blue(TM).

Bob began milking cows on his Point Reyes dairy in 1959. Over the years, Bob, and his wife, Dean, together with their four daughters, Karen, Diana, Lynn, and Jill, developed a shared vision of bringing a value-added farmstead product directly from their ranch to the consumer's table. This dream was realized in August 2000 when they founded Point Reyes Farmstead Cheese Company and produced the first vat of Original Blue™.

"We chose to make blue cheese out of a two-fold love of food and cooking. As a family that shares a passion for all things gourmet, blue cheese was a natural because of its versatility in the kitchen and its ability to stand alone as a table cheese," says Jill Giacomini Basch.

SOILANIMAL HUSBANDRY PRACTICES: The Giacomini's 250 Holstein cows are pasture-fed seasonally and silage-fed (comprised of local-grasses grown on the ranch) the remainder of the year. Whey is recycled as liquid feed for the cattle. Cows are given no hormones or antibiotics. The herd is a closed herd.

SOIL: Raw and aged manure and compost are used to build the soil.

WEED CONTROL: Hand and machine cultivation.

WATER USE: Dam water, sprinkle irrigation; cow manure is recycled into irrigation of fields.

ORGANIC CERTIFICATION: None