Being a cheesemaker at New Roots

My name is Simon Leiser. As production manager at New Roots, I am responsible for producing the right quality and quantity with my team of 5 people.

I completed a 3-year apprenticeship as a cheesemaker a good 20 years ago and worked in various cheese dairies in the Thun region. In the following seven years, I continued my education to become a master cheese maker. All in all, I worked for almost 10 years on the yellow line and then ten years on the white line in a dairy. I have been working at New Roots since 2021.

I was in contact with Freddy (ed. New Roots cofounder) professionally and he told me about this position. At the time, my two children were still small and I really wanted to work part-time, which was possible at New Roots. On a taster day I experienced the cohesion in the team, how everyone supported each other, not a bad word was spoken and the whole team stood in for each other. I was so impressed that I didn’t have to think twice and accepted the position at New Roots.

I think it’s both my 20 years of professional experience and my leadership experience. In all my previous activities I have led a team of apprentices and employees.

We produce as traditionally as possible. The only difference is the milk. We don’t have cow’s milk that we process like at a traditional cheese factory or dairy, we process nuts that we soak in water to make our own plant-based milk. The dry matter is mixed with water and from this point the process is very similar to cheese making. We add cultures and ferment the mass overnight. In the morning we add the herbs, mix and fill into the packages.

Yes, you can certainly say that. For example, when I think of the production process for ricotta with the dripping and loss of liquid, or of camembert, our Soft White, which is matured in traditional racks, sprayed with cultures and turned every two days so that the mold grows nicely, then there is actually no difference to a fresh or soft cheese production.

In my case, I relate innovation to the product. During my training and further education, I learned that nowadays you have to be innovative in the entire dairy industry in order to keep shelf space at Coop and Migros. You always have to be one step ahead of the competition with innovations if you want to run a company successfully.

Very strongly, especially in relation to the plant-based diet. I noticed an effect, especially in the sport area. I do endurance sports and notice that my pulse comes down much faster after a climb on the bike if I eat healthy and vegan.