Jacqui and Michael Segura in one of several cheese storage rooms in their Whitefield home. The couple acquired Fuzzy Udder Creamery last year and plan to grow the business. (Ali Juell photo)
Two years ago, Jacqui and Michael Segura were what they like to call “cheese adjacent.” They knew their local cheesemonger well, they hosted dinner parties with a range of cheese selections, and their daughter even had five rounds of cheese at her wedding in place of a cake.
The couple spent the majority of their careers working in the corporate technology sphere, but Michael was looking for a change of pace when he stumbled upon Fuzzy Udder Creamery’s for-sale listing in January 2024.
Founder Jessie Dowling decided she wanted to leave cheese making behind to start Iron Ledge Farm, a training space for horseback riders, after riding in the Mongol Derby. After speaking with Dowling, Jacqui and Michael Segura decided to buy the business and pack up their home in St. Louis, Mo. to become full-time cheese makers in Whitefield.
As the creamery approaches its 15-year anniversary, the couple hopes to take Fuzzy Udder to new heights by scaling up the business, developing new products, and getting Fuzzy Udder onto the shelves of larger grocery stores.
Jacqui Segura previously worked for Barmetrix, an analytics company serving restaurants and bars, but there has been plenty to learn the ropes of cheese making as the couple took on Fuzzy Udder’s operations. Jacqui and Michael Segura wear many hats, including owners, delivery workers, farmers’ market representatives, and cheese producers.
It’s hard work and a steep learning curve, Michael Segura said, but the couple has enjoyed the switch from their previous careers in the corporate sector.
“There’s a lot of jobs you can do that don’t have any tangible existence in the real world,” Jacqui Segura said. “This is the opposite of that. You’re in a wet room in your boots; up to your elbows in curds … You go to bed exhausted, but you can also see what you’ve created.”
The creamery uses 400 gallons of milk a week from three local dairy farms. Using cow, sheep, and goat’s milk, the Seguras and their employees produce all of the company’s products, including feta, chevre, and blue cheese, by hand.
“The only thing we have that’s really mechanized is the vacuum sealer for our bags,” Jacqui Segura said. “Otherwise it is all hand packed, cut, wrapped, jarred, and flipped.”
Even as they look to expand operations, Jacqui Segura said the couple doesn’t want to lose the hand-crafted care that Dowling founded the creamery on.
As of now, Fuzzy Udder products are in over 40 local stores across Maine and in restaurants including Damariscotta’s River Grill and The Lost Kitchen in Freedom. The cheeses can also be purchased at the farm’s stand, at select farmers’ markets, or online.
The Seguras hope to bring some Fuzzy Udder products into large-scale supermarkets so they can bring on more employees and guarantee demand year-round.
Fuzzy Udder Creamery’s cheese is stored in a temperature-regulated room before being sold. The Whitefield creamery is approaching its 15-year anniversary as its owners look to expand. (Ali Juell photo)
“We’d like some stability and predictability,” Jacqui Segura said. “We need to do a lot of work to get there.”
The Seguras have had some preliminary conversations with Hannaford, but the couple said there’s still several hoops to jump through before they can make their company’s foray into chain grocery stores a reality.
“It takes time to ramp up,” Michael Segura said.
The path to large-scale sales includes purchasing some new machinery and doing renovations to create more space so they can keep up with sales and meet the expected demand for the products. The creamery is hoping to secure $30,000 in grant funding to help with the process.
The Seguras approached the Whitefield Select Board on Tuesday, June 17 to request support in applying for a community development block grant from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The grant’s purpose is to help businesses expand so they can afford to eventually bring on more full-time employees.
If they receive the grant, Jacqui Segura said the money could go toward a number of different projects, like purchasing a machine to fill jars and expanding the creamery’s freezer space.
“We have a long list of things that we need to get done,” Michael Segura said. “Now it’s prioritizing.”
Plotting out their next business investments means considering not only growth but also what’s best for their employees and their milk producers, Jacqui Segura said.
“When you buy a piece of Fuzzy Udder cheese, you’re supporting our creamery but you’re also supporting dairy farms as well,” Jacqui Segura said. “They have faith in us. We feel a great responsibility to them.”
The couple has big dreams for the creamery’s future, but as the Seguras and their employees ramp up production for the summer, their focus is fulfilling current orders and continuing to experiment with new varieties.
Their existing offerings are enough to keep them and their employees busy, but Jacqui Segura said she loves to explore the different add-ins that can enhance their cheeses. She said a line of flower-pressed cheeses is on the horizon.
As the Seguras continue to explore new opportunities both in and outside their cheese making room, they said they’re thankful to be involved in the generous and welcoming agricultural community.
“It’s amazing to feel so connected,” Jacqui Segura said.
For more information about the Fuzzy Udder Creamery, go to fuzzyudder.com or call 549-3817.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by PostX News and is published from a syndicated feed.)
