CannonBelles olive cheddar is the Cannon Falls creamery’s newest tribute, created in memory of co-owner Kathy Hupf’s mother, Olive, who died March 15 at age 92. The olive and pimento cheddar quietly reached store shelves across Minnesota in late summer.
On the first day CannonBelles made cheese in its new plant, Olive Hupf watched start to finish from the conference room, peering through the large window into the make room. She had once joked her daughter and business partners were a bit ambitious for launching a cheese company, but she never missed a chance to support them.
CannonBelles olive cheddar born from a family legacy
“She loved olives, so she would love it,” Kathy Hupf said at the FEAST local food marketplace in Rochester on Nov. 7, where she and co-owner Jackie Ohmann discussed the new product and the woman behind it. Hupf and Ohmann, along with co-owner Deeann Lufkin, run the Cannon Falls-based business.
Hupf described her mother as energetic and involved. According to her obituary, Olive grew up in Canby, Minnesota, the youngest of six, and worked as a soda jerk at Kreiser’s Drug Store. She met her husband, Vernon, while roller skating, and the pair became avid polka dancers.
The couple began dairy farming near Northfield in 1956 and purchased a farm near Randolph in 1962, where they raised six children. Olive helped establish the Dakota County Junior Holstein Association and the Minnesota Ayrshire State Show at the Cannon Valley Fair. She launched a 4-H Cloverbud program for young children and managed 4-H dairy shows at both the Cannon Valley and Dakota County fairs. She exhibited flowers and baked goods at fairs, including the Minnesota State Fair, served on the Randolph school board, and helped start Randolph High School’s agriculture program in 1977.
At St. Mathias Catholic Church in Hampton, she founded a children’s choir and played organ for Mass. For more than 15 years, she organized a gift drive for children in Kentucky. Kathy Hupf grew up on the family dairy and later ran her own herd.
As CannonBelles grew, Olive became one of its strongest boosters, telling friends about the venture and occasionally greeting customers at the owners’ coffee shop in Cannon Falls. “She would definitely let everybody know about us,” Ohmann said, adding that Olive loved to support the business. “Just a wonderful woman.”
From idea to shelves
Ohmann said the inspiration struck during a Tuesday cheese make, shortly after learning of Olive’s passing. She asked the team if they could try an olive cheese. Someone went to the store for green olives, which she preferred for their stronger flavor, and the crew folded them into a cheddar with pimentos.
Ohmann brought the finished cheese to the visitation as a surprise. “It was perfect,” Hupf said. “So we served it at the funeral the next day, and it went over like gangbusters.” Interest followed quickly. “Like, well, I think we should make it now,” Ohmann said. Hupf said the flavor is balanced. “It’s not an overwhelming olive, but it’s just the right amount.”
CannonBelles, which started cheesemaking at the University of Minnesota’s Pilot Plant, began selling the olive cheddar in late summer and early fall. Hupf said sales have been strong. The company’s cheeses are now in roughly 120 to 130 stores in Minnesota and a few in Wisconsin.
With the holidays approaching, the team is producing its seasonal cranberry cheddar. They are also testing a freeze-dried cheese with a crunchy, cracker-like texture and building out online sales. The owners have operated their coffee and ice cream shop in Cannon Falls for seven years.
“We felt like we are truly a part of the family of Cannon Falls, like part of the community, and we’ve just been so loved by them,” Hupf said.
As for the olive cheddar’s future, Hupf offered a simple answer. “I’m leaving it up to mom. She’s got to make this one work.”