The Luxist Awards - The Pinnacle of Fine Living

Allison Hooper

Cheesemaker and Entrepreneur

Cheesemaker and entrepreneur Allison Hooper, co-founder of Vermont Butter and Cheese Company, was among the first artisan cheesemakers in the United States. With co-founder Bob Reese, they brought the everyday cheese and dairy delicacy of France to the American table. Before starting that business in 1984, Allison was a dairy products quality technician with the Vermont Department of Agriculture. She began her career as a cheesemaking apprentice in Brittany and Haute Alps while studying in France. Ms. Hooper has served on Boards of Directors for the Vermont Sustainable Jobs Fund, as well as the Vermont Fresh Network, an organization that promotes local, sustainable food distribution through farmer to chef partnerships. Allison and her partner, Bob Reese, were awarded Vermont Small Business Persons of the Year in 1996. She has worked for Land O Lakes International Development to revitalize domestic cheesemaking in the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. She is the Founding- President of the Vermont Cheese Council and was President of the American Cheese Society from 2007 through 2009. Allison and her husband Don live on a farm in Brookfield, Vermont, where the creamery originally started with their three sons, Miles, Sam, and Jay.