When Gianni Toffolon started making cheese, it was because he needed a job. He knew after his first batch that making cheese was more than a job. Toffolon considers cheese an art, and it is his lifelong passion. He’d never even heard of Wisconsin when he came from Italy in 1979 to work as a cheesemaker at BelGioioso Cheese in the Green Bay area.

Four decades later, he’s a certified master cheesemaker in Parmesan and Fontina who has overseen the development and growth of Italian specialty cheeses, including his favorite, American Grana. BelGioioso now exports to 45 countries, and in 2019, BelGioioso took top honors for fresh mozzarella, Parmesan, mascarpone and provolone at the U.S. Cheese Championship.