Wisconsin dairy artisans claimed 135 awards at the 2026 World Championship Cheese Contest, including 44 best-of-class honors, outpacing every other state and country in the competition – and outperforming the next five highest-earning competitors combined.
The contest drew more than 3,000 entries from 34 U.S. states and territories and 25 countries, with international judges evaluating products across 148 classes spanning cheese, yogurt, butter and other dairy products.
Wisconsin’s numbers
Wisconsin producers earned 44 first-place awards, 43 second-place awards and 48 third-place awards. The state also achieved 22 class sweeps – winning first, second and third place in the same category. A total of 38 Wisconsin cheese and dairy companies collected at least one award.
Agropur led all Wisconsin producers with 11 awards. Decatur Dairy earned 10 awards and swept the top three positions in both the Havarti and flavored Havarti classes. Klondike Cheese Company’s Odyssey brand swept the flavored feta class. Deer Creek Cheese and Nasonville Dairy each took best-of-class honors in three separate categories.
What it means for the dairy state
Chad Vincent, CEO of Dairy Farmers of Wisconsin and Wisconsin Cheese, said the results reflect the breadth of the state’s dairy talent, not just its scale.
“Wisconsin showed up on the global stage and took home more awards than any other state or country,” Vincent said. “At a world competition celebrating an incredible variety of dairy products, Wisconsin producers earn top honors across dozens of categories, reflecting the exceptional depth of knowledge, craftsmanship, and quality that defines our state.”
Wisconsin is home to more than 1,200 licensed cheesemakers who collectively produce more than 600 varieties, styles and types of cheese. Proudly Wisconsin Cheese products are available in 99 percent of grocery retailers nationwide.
The full list of award winners is available at wisconsincheese.com/our-cheese/award-winners.