Prairie Fruits Farm & Creamery

Last Updated On: May 7th, 2026 at 07:36PM MST

Contact information

Farm Address:
4410 N. Lincoln Ave.
Champaign, Illinois, 61822

Primary Contact: Leslie Cooperband
Primary Phone:
    Type: Cell
    Number: 2178408645
    Email: prairiefruits@gmail.com

Website: https://www.prairiefruits.com

Internship information

General Farm Description: Founded in 2005, we are a farmstead goat dairy and creamery. We make cheese, gelato and other dairy products from our certified AWA herd of dairy goats.

CRAFT Member Farm? No

Internship Starts: May 24,2021
Internship Ends: 23-May-22
Number of Internship Available: 1
Application Deadline: 15-May-21
Minimum Length of Stay: one year

Internship Details:

Cheese Making and Plant Sanitation Assistant
SUMMARY
The cheese making assistant is a support role in the creamery. He/she will participate in most aspects of cheese making, with an emphasis on cleaning . He/she will become proficient at transferring milk from the bulk tanks to pasteurizer-vats, performing all associated cleaning, pasteurizing and making fresh chevre, assisting with other styles of cheese makes, packaging cheese, organizing cheeses for wholesale and retail sales and shipping cheese. He/she will be responsible for routine daily, weekly and monthly creamery cleaning and facility maintenance.
QUALIFICATIONS
• Detail oriented
• Conscientious
• Excellent personal hygiene
• Enjoyment of cleaning and other repetitive tasks
• Pride in a job well done
• Ability to perform more than one task simultaneously (multi-tasking)
• Ability to work efficiently and perform tasks (once mastered) in timely manner
• Ability to work alone and in a small team setting
• Honesty
• Willingness to learn, especially the technical aspects of cheese making
• Ability to be on your feet for 8-10 hours/day
• Ability to lift 50 pounds
DUTIES
• Washing molds, racks, mats and other utensils and vessels used in cheese making
• Milk transfer from bulk tanks to cheese vats
• Running CIP (clean in place system for pipe cleaning)
• Pasteurization
• Cheese ladling, flipping
• Cheese packing (e.g. fresh chevre, cottage cheese)
• Bloomy rind cheese flipping, wrapping
• Performing daily, weekly and monthly facility cleaning
• Learning and maintaining basic food safety protocols (cleaning and managing product inventory to ensure freshness and purity)
• Packing cheeses for wholesale and retail sales
• Assisting with cheese shipping (both wholesale and retail orders)
• Attending and participating in staff meetings (dairy and creamery staff)
Interested individuals please submit a letter of interest and a current resume via email.
Opportunities for advancement and long term employment available for the right person.

Educational Opportunities: We will teach the hired person the basic concepts of cheese making and dairy plant sanitation.

Skills Desired: Prior experience in food service or dairy farms a plus. Ability to work on your feet for at least 8 hours in a day; ability to learn and master complex tasks, basic algebra, ability to lift 50 lbs. excellent personal hygiene.

Meals: No.

Stipend: Yes, we pay $15/hour for a 40 hour work week. Opportunities for benefits like health insurance also available.

Housing: No.

Preferred method of Contact: email