What American Cheese Society does

American Cheese Society (ACS) is a U.S.-based non-profit professional association founded in 1983 that serves the American artisan cheese industry. Headquartered in Englewood, Colorado with 1-10 employees, ACS operates as the primary trade body for cheesemakers, cheesemongers, distributors, foodservice operators, dairy farmers, and cheese enthusiasts in the United States (with periodic outreach into Canada, including a 2011 conference in Montreal). The organization delivers value through four interlocking programs: (1) an annual rotating-city conference (the 2026 event scheduled for Louisville, KY, July 7-10); (2) the annual Judging & Competition, the largest technical and aesthetic cheese evaluation in North America; (3) two professional certifications — ACS Certified Cheese Professional® (CCP) and ACS Certified Cheese Sensory Evaluator® (CCSE) — delivered via Prometric testing centers and virtual remote-proctored exams; and (4) a portfolio of educational resources including the Learning Center and webinar archive, The Safe Cheesemaking Hub, the Cheese & Dairy Product Lexicon & Glossary, and biennial State of the Industry Reports funded by its affiliated American Cheese Education Foundation (ACEF).

ACS generates revenue from four primary streams: conference registration fees (tiered by timing), recurring membership dues at individual and organizational levels, one-time certification exam fees with periodic recertification, and Meet the Cheesemaker table fees (tiered from $290 for early-bird cheesemaker tables to $1,500 for non-cheese Marketplace Sponsors). Go-to-market is event-driven and community-led: the annual conference is the primary engagement node, supplemented by year-round webinars, member newsletters, and earned media through partnerships with titles such as Culture Magazine and Deli Business. The organization also publishes multiple searchable directories (Member, Cheese Educator, CCP, CCSE) and runs scholarship and award programs.

Technically, ACS is not a technology company. Its stack is a conventional association platform: website CMS, member portal (MemberClicks), LMS for the Learning Center, and the Award Force competition management platform for the Judging & Competition. No proprietary software, no AI/ML initiatives, and no API or SDK surface is documented. Strategic emphasis is on the recurring annual conference and certification ecosystem rather than technology platforms.

Name

American Cheese Society

Legal name

American Cheese Society

Website

https://cheesesociety.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1983

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

American Cheese Society is a U.S. non-profit professional association founded in 1983 that serves the American artisan cheese industry through an annual conference, the ACS Judging & Competition, two professional certifications (CCP and CCSE), and educational resources for cheesemakers, mongers, distributors, foodservice operators, and enthusiasts.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Professional Trade Association Services

NAICS

Professional Organizations (813920)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Association & Society Conference Management (Nonprofit, Professional Bodies) (THAHACAA)

Keywords

• Professional cheese association
• Cheese certification programs
• Cheese industry education
• Artisan cheese competition
• Annual cheese conference

Headquarters

HQ city

Englewood

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Conference Registration: ACS generates revenue through annual conference registration fees, including full conference passes, single-day passes, guest tickets, and special event tickets.
2. Membership Dues: ACS provides membership levels (Organizational, Individual) with benefits including discounted conference rates, access to Member Center, Learning Center, and member directories.
3. Certification Exams: Revenue from ACS CCP (Certified Cheese Professional) and ACS CCSE (Certified Cheese Sensory Evaluator) certification exams, including exam fees and recertification.
4. Meet the Cheesemaker Table Fees: ACS charges table fees for vendors to participate in the Meet the Cheesemaker event at the annual conference, with tiered pricing based on registration timing.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

American Cheese Society is a non-profit professional association that delivers an annual cheese industry conference, an annual Judging & Competition, and two nationally recognized certifications (ACS CCP® and ACS CCSE®). It monetizes membership subscriptions, paid conference and Meet the Cheesemaker registrations, certification exam fees, and industry sponsorships.

Product overview

The American Cheese Society offers a portfolio of professional development programs and services rather than a unified software product. The core offerings include the Annual Conference (annual industry gathering featuring education, networking, and competitions), Judging & Competition (prestigious cheese evaluation program), and two professional certifications (ACS CCP® and ACS CCSE®). Supporting services include educational resources such as the Learning Center, Safe Cheesemaking Hub, Cheese Lexicon & Glossary, and State of the Industry Reports. Additional programs include Meet the Cheesemaker events, Restaurant Menu Pop-Ups, Cheese Educator and Member directories, Industry Calendar, and scholarship programs. The American Cheese Education Foundation (ACEF) supports fundraising for educational access within the industry.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• ACS CCP® (Certified Cheese Professional®): ACS Certified Cheese Professional® certification that formally recognizes professional achievement at a national level.
• ACS CCSE® (Certified Cheese Sensory Evaluator®)
• ACS Judging & Competition
• ACS Annual Conference
• The Safe Cheesemaking Hub

Products and services

• ACS Annual Conference Annual multi-day professional conference for the U.S. cheese industry featuring educational sessions, tastings, networking events, and the Awards Ceremony. Open to cheesemakers, mongers, retailers, distributors, foodservice operators, and enthusiasts.
• ACS Judging & Competition Annual paid-entry competition evaluating American-made cheeses through technical and aesthetic judging, awarding recognition and prestige to winners. Entrants are artisan cheesemakers across multiple cheese categories.
• ACS Certified Cheese Professional® (ACS CCP®) Paid professional certification exam for cheese professionals (cheesemongers, buyers, makers) demonstrating national-level cheese expertise. Includes examination, credential, and recurring recertification.
• ACS Certified Cheese Sensory Evaluator® (ACS CCSE®) Paid professional certification exam for sensory evaluation specialists assessing cheese quality and characteristics. Includes examination, credential, and recurring recertification.
• ACS Membership Recurring annual subscription membership (Individual and Organizational tiers) granting members access to member directories, discounted conference and certification rates, the Member Center portal, and the Learning Center.
• Meet the Cheesemaker Paid table-based event at the Annual Conference where cheese and cultured dairy producers sample products to industry distributors, retailers, buyers, and food writers.

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Cheese Trail LLCcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 13 March 2026ACS has partnered with Cheese Trail LLC to provide complimentary or discounted national directory listings for ACS members on CheeseTrail.org. The collaboration supports Cheese Trail's expansion from a regional California-focused initiative into a comprehensive national digital directory of artisan cheesemakers. Cheese Trail, founded in 2011 by Vivien Straus, has distributed over 800,000 printed maps and is developing a unified digital platform to increase discoverability for cheesemakers while supporting regional guilds and state-level initiatives.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• National Milk Producers Federation: NMPF is a dairy-farmer cooperative organization representing U.S. milk producers. Comparable to ACS as a membership-based dairy industry body that runs industry events, conducts advocacy, and produces data on the U.S. dairy sector, though its constituency is producers rather than cheesemakers specifically.
• Cheese Importers Association of America: CIAA represents U.S. importers, distributors, and marketers of foreign cheeses. Comparable to ACS as a cheese-specific U.S. trade association with member services and industry events, though focused on the import segment rather than domestic cheesemakers.
• International Dairy Foods Association: IDFA is the U.S. dairy industry's largest trade association, representing processors, manufacturers, and brands. Comparable to ACS in that both serve as membership-based industry bodies with annual conferences, advocacy, and member education, though IDFA covers the full dairy category rather than specializing in cheese.
• American Dairy Products Institute: ADPI is a trade association serving the U.S. dairy ingredients and processed products industry. Comparable to ACS in operating as a membership body for dairy professionals with technical events, education, and industry data products.
• Wisconsin Cheese Makers Association: WCMA is a state-level cheese industry trade group representing U.S. cheese manufacturers, primarily in Wisconsin. Directly comparable to ACS in serving cheesemakers with advocacy, networking events, and education, though focused on a single state and on manufacturing rather than mongers and retailers.
• American Butter Institute: ABI is a U.S. trade association for the butter manufacturing industry. Comparable to ACS as a small, dairy-category-specific trade body serving processors, though with a narrower product focus on butter rather than cheese.

Broad incumbents

• Specialty Food Association: SFA is a broader U.S. trade association for specialty food producers, retailers, and distributors. Comparable to ACS in operating member services, the Fancy Food Shows, and industry awards, though covering the full specialty food category rather than cheese specifically.

Regional players

• Guild of Fine Food: Guild of Fine Food is a UK-based trade association for independent cheesemongers, grocers, and food producers. Comparable to ACS in running member services, cheese competitions (the World Cheese Awards), and educational programs for cheese professionals, though serving the UK market.
• Dairy Australia: Dairy Australia is the Australian dairy industry service body, funded by farmer levies. Comparable to ACS as a dairy industry organization providing research, education, marketing, and advocacy, though serving the Australian market with a broader dairy scope.

Others

• Oldways: Oldways is a nonprofit food and nutrition advocacy organization that runs heritage-diet education programs. Adjacent to ACS in the artisan/farmstead food space and in running educational programs, but focused on consumer nutrition messaging rather than cheesemaker industry support.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/cheesesociety
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCXXX
• Facebookfacebook.com/AmericanCheeseSociety
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/american-cheese-society
• Instagraminstagram.com/americancheesesociety

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about American Cheese Society