FROMAGERIES BRUN

What FROMAGERIES BRUN does

Fromageries Brun is a fifth-generation, family-owned cheese aging house (affineur) founded in 1921 in Poligny, France, the capital of the Comté region. The company specializes in traditional AOP Comté (aged 12 to 36 months) and AOP Morbier (aged 45 to 90 days) cheeses, operating from a four-level facility that includes one of the oldest still-active aging caves in the region. Production combines traditional affinage methods on spruce wood boards under the direction of master affineur Gerald Piellard with modern robotics for turning, salting, rubbing, and racking cheese wheels. The company sources cheese wheels from seven fruitières (cheese-making cooperatives) across the Jura region, ensuring milk from Montbéliarde cows on Jurassian pastures.

The business sells exclusively through a wholesale, field-sales model directly to professional cheese retailers (crémiers), who visit the caves one to two times per year to personally select wheels reserved and aged on their behalf. Pricing is not publicly disclosed and no public retail or third-party distribution channels are documented. Marketing relies on the Maxim's trade brand (registered in 1925), recipe content on the company website, trade show participation at Salon du Fromage and Salon Mondial du Fromage, and industry recognition including Gault&Millau features and 2023 International Cheese Competition medals. Fromageries Brun employs 12 people, holds €2,484,500 in share capital, and remains 100% independent with no external investors or parent entities.

Name

FROMAGERIES BRUN

Legal name

FROMAGERIES BRUN SA SAS

Website

https://xn--maximscomt-k7a.fr

Company type

Private

Founded year

1921

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Fromageries Brun is a fifth-generation French cheese aging house founded in 1921 in Poligny, specializing in AOP Comté and Morbier aged in traditional spruce wood caves and sold wholesale to professional cheese retailers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Aged AOP Cheese Production

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYAFAHABAH

Cheese Aging/Affineur Services (Maturation & Cave-Aging)

Agriculture & Food Production/Dairy Processing/Cheese Manufacturing (Natural & Processed)

Keywords

• Aged French cheese
• AOP cheese affinage
• Comté cheese aging
• Morbier cheese aging
• Artisanal cheese maturation

Headquarters

HQ city

Poligny

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Operations, Personnel, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. AOP Cheese Sales: Fromageries Brun generates revenue through the sale of AOP-certified Comté and Morbier cheeses to cheese retailers (crémiers). Their cheeses are aged for extended periods (12-36 months for Comté, 45-90 days for Morbier) and sold to professional cheese retailers who visit the caves to select their wheels.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

FROMAGERIES BRUN is a heritage cheese aging house (affineur) that purchases raw wheels of Comté AOP and Morbier AOP from seven regional fruitières and matures them in its own cellars under the Maxim's brand. Comté is aged between 12 and 36 months and Morbier between 45 and 90 days, using traditional spruce wood boards combined with robotic handling, and the finished wheels are sold wholesale to professional cheese retailers.

Product overview

FROMAGERIES BRUN is a family-owned affineur (cheese aging house) founded in 1921, specializing in traditional AOP cheeses from the Franche-Comté region. The company operates one of the oldest aging caves in Poligny, the capital of Comté, and sources cheese wheels from 7 local fruitières (cooperative dairies). The product portfolio centers on two core offerings: Comté AOP (aged 12-36 months in spruce wood caves) and Morbier AOP (aged 45-90 days), both produced using artisanal methods passed down through five generations. The company also offers a collection of gourmet recipes featuring their cheeses.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Maxim's: Trade name for Fromageries Brun's AOP cheeses including Comté and Morbier, marketed as premium artisan affineur products with aging ranging from 12 to 36 months for Comté and 45 to 90 days for Morbier.

Products and services

• Comté AOP Maxim's
• Morbier AOP Maxim's

Quantifiable outcome

• AOP-certified Comté with up to 36 months aging and Morbier with 45-90 days aging
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• 7 Fruitières (Cheese-making Cooperatives)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFromageries Brun sources their Comté from 7 cheese-making cooperatives (fruitières) in the Jura region. These partnerships ensure supply of artisanal Comté meeting AOP specifications, with milk from Montbéliarde cows grazing on diverse Jurassian pastures.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Rodolphe Le Meunier: Independent French affineur recognized as a Meilleur Ouvrier de France, with traditional cave-based aging and a similar premium retailer and chef customer base. Direct analog for artisanal long-aged French cheese production.
• Hervé Mons Fromager Affineur: Renowned French maître affineur operating across multiple cheese categories with similar long-aging expertise and premium positioning. Comparable GTM to specialty cheese retailers, chefs, and gourmet channels in France and internationally.
• Maison Marcel Petite: Long-established Comté affineur also based in the Franche-Comté/Jura region, sourcing from local fruitières and aging wheels in traditional caves. Direct competitor for crémier accounts and shared supply chain with the same fruitière cooperatives.
• Fromagerie Berthaut: Generational family affineur specializing in Époisses and other AOP Burgundy cheeses, with comparable small-team structure, cave-based aging, and SMB cheese retailer distribution model.
• Fromagerie Dubois: Independent French affineur specializing in aged hard cheeses and AOP varieties, operating with traditional methods and direct relationships with independent cheese shops — closely comparable in scale, customer mix, and artisanal positioning.

Broad incumbents

• Savencia Fromage & Dairy: Major French dairy group with a broad specialty cheese portfolio including multiple AOP brands. Operates at vastly larger scale and competes for premium cheese retail shelf space and foodservice accounts that Brun targets.
• Lactalis: World's largest dairy group, headquartered in France with significant specialty cheese operations including AOP brands. Sets competitive benchmarks for AOP cheese scale, distribution, and retailer relationships.
• Sodiaal: France's largest dairy cooperative, with significant cheese manufacturing including AOP varieties and a fruitière-aligned cooperative model that overlaps with Brun's upstream supply chain relationships.
• Bel Group: Large French dairy multinational with both branded consumer cheese (Babybel, Laughing Cow) and specialty/AOP offerings. Relevant incumbent for premium cheese retail and export distribution channels.

Others

• CIGC (Comté Interprofession): Interprofessional body that manages the Comté AOP, sets production rules, and promotes the category globally. While not a competitor, CIGC shapes the regulatory and marketing environment in which Brun and other Comté affineurs operate, and its category-building efforts amplify demand for all affineurs including Brun.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/fromageries-brun

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about FROMAGERIES BRUN