Veronica and Steve Baetje say they are goat farmers. But they are really award-winning cheese makers, producing pure, farmstead, artisan goat cheeses at their farm in Bloomsdale, Mo. The cheese is marketed through four local farmers markets, several restaurants and wineries and 17 grocery stores at most recent count. The Baetjes produce about 200 pounds of cheese a week, rising at 3 a.m. to milk their 53 goats. The farm typically sells out of every type of cheese during the 10 months of the year they manufacture. January and February are slower cheese-making months, as the milk is utilized to feed the baby goats, according to Veronica.
Upon graduation from the Ste. Genevieve Operation Jump-Start training course in 2008, sponsored by the Southeast Missouri Innovation Center, Veronica said that they became more keenly aware of areas in which their business could grow and how to further market their products. The class teaches participants business skills in a non-academic setting and prepares them to design a viable feasibility plan for the business venture they are considering.
In October of 2008 the Baetjes’ cheese won several awards at a national competition in California sponsored by the American Dairy Goat Association. They won Reserve Best of Show and 1st place for “Sainte Genevieve” a cheese inspired by a 14th century recipe. 1st place for “Coeur de la Crème”; garlic and chives, and 2nd place for their “Bloomsdale” a French pyramid shaped cheese inspired by Valencay. Many of their customers say their cheeses rival the delicious cheeses one might find in Europe. They also produce Coeur de Clos, a Camembert-like cheese; and Fleur de la Vallee, a semi-hard washed rind cheese made with raw milk.
Their most recent award comes from the Southeast Missouri State University Innovation Center, who honored Baetje Farms and six other businesses during National Entrepreneurship Week in February of 2009. The distinguished businesses are part of a larger group of about 240 businesses that have been created or expanded through the Innovation Center’s nationally recognized, award-winning small business training programs, Operation Bootstrap and Operation Jump-Start.
For more information about Baetje Farms, please visit www.baetjefarms.