Starting this November, consumers (including you!) will be able to purchase Land O Lakes® cheese in the dairy section in Cub stores in Minnesota.

Land O’Lakes is launching with 12 SKUs – including shredded cheese, chunk cheese and snack cheese in Cub, which is part of a longer and broader launch strategy. The product line up features our award-winning cheddar cheese produced at the Kiel plant in Wisconsin.

“What we started seeing was purpose-driven brands driving share, and we have the quality cheesemaking abilities and the farmer-owned story to make an impact,” said Katie Signorelli, marketing director of consumer cheese, Dairy Foods. “This category is four times the size of the butter category and gives us tremendous runway for long-term growth.”

Entering this category was no easy feat, and you could say a seed was planted during the early days of the pandemic, when supply chains were snarled, and creative solutions were key to make product for our members’ milk. At that time, Land O’Lakes’ famer-owned story resonated with local-Minnesota retailer Cub and they agreed to take on 5lb bags of mozzarella cheese so our members could avoid dumping milk. This collaboration with Cub helped set the team up for success when they presented their proposal for 12 new dairy case cheese items.

The Dairy Foods team created a vision that tied our farmer-owned messaging with our cheesemaking abilities to make this launch a reality and set us up for future expansion and growth.

Although the dairy case cheese section is crowded, research showed an opportunity in our own backyard, where the cheese is produced and our consumers are used to buying Land O’Lakes licensed products such as milk, sour cream and whipped cream.

“In looking at the way the competitive landscape was shifting in the cheese section with purpose-driven brands driving share, as well as where our brand recognition was strongest, focusing on the Midwest made sense,” says Erica McDougall, associate marketing manager, consumer cheese. “Land O’Lakes belongs in the dairy case cheese space and we’re confident that people will be excited to try these products and be back to buy them again and again.”

Head to your local Cub store today to try the product for yourself! Here are some ideas for using the product in your upcoming recipes for holidays or gatherings:

Thanksgiving
Baked Macaroni & Cheese Uses:1 (8 oz) bag Land O Lakes® Cheesemakers’ Blend Farmstyle Shreds

December holidays
Baked Cranberry Jalapeno Dip Uses 1 (8 oz) block Land O Lakes® Sharp White or Yellow Cheddar Cheese, shredded (2 cups)
Red & White Sauce Lasagna Uses 1 (8oz) bag Land O Lakes® Mozzarella Farmstyle Shreds

Big Game
Spinach Artichoke Pull Apart Party Loaf Uses ¼ cup Land O Lakes® Mozzarella Farmstyle Shreds (from 8 oz bag)
Cheese-Stuffed Pretzel Buns Uses Yellow or White Sharp Cheddar Chunk, cut into cubes
Bacon & Pimento Cheese Grilled Cheese Uses 1 cup Land O Lakes® Sharp Cheddar Farmstyle Shreds (from 8 oz bag)