STARKVILLE — Jennifer Portera, manager of the Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station (MAFES) Sales Store on the campus of Mississippi State University, gave an update to Starkville Town and Country Garden Club members about stores’ remodel and various products at the garden club’s Thursday meeting held at the First Baptist Church Applegate building.
“I do not think any of us realized how much cheese the MAFES Store sells,” said Connie Templeton, vice president of the Starkville Town and Country Garden Club. “Jennifer said they load and ship five 18-wheelers of cheese and gifts in December to ship across the country for Christmas.”
According to Portera, the MSU dairy has 150 dairy cows who get milked twice daily 365 days a year by college workers and staff, which produces 475,000 gallons of raw milk a year. The Dairy Plant then uses that milk to produce 50,000 balls of Edam cheese, 50,000 blocks of Cheddar cheese, 10,000 wheels of Vallagret cheese, 5,500 pounds of butter, 40,000 gallons of fluid milk and 25,000 gallons of ice cream.
“You hear the word artisan a lot on social media and in conversation referring to specialty foods and products, and I feel that is really what Mississippi State has been doing for a long time,” Portera said.
Portera shared that MAFES began making and selling its famous “cannon ball” Edam cheese more than 75 years ago, and it now sells multiple cheese varieties, milk, butter, ice cream, eggs, meat, catfish, honey, jellies and jams, coffee, sauces and McCarty’s pottery.
The store, located at 925 Stone Blvd. on Mississippi State’s campus, was configured in an L-shape that was not conducive for retail; therefore, the store underwent renovation to make it larger and more open. The renovation is complete, and the store is now open Monday through Friday, from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Campus parking can be a problem, but the store has five 10-minute parking spaces convenient for customers to come by and grab some cheese or a gift.
Portera encouraged everyone to drop by and see the renovated store and to get their online cheese and gift orders in because supplies are going fast and Nov. 25 is the last day the store will take orders.
In addition to the presentation on the MAFES Store, the meeting included committee reports and a thorough discussion of the club’s upcoming tablescapes event on Oct. 24 at the First Baptist Church Outreach Center. Only 300 tickets are available for the tablescapes event, and tickets can be purchased for $50 each at Luna Bella, Olive Tree, Restaurant Tyler and Whittington’s in Starkville.
Hostesses for the October meeting included Kathryn Davis, Dawn Herring, Cindy Melby and Tracey Millsaps.
The Starkville Town and Country Garden Club strives to improve the knowledge of its members through monthly educational programs, regional workshops, and the sharing of information and resources among club members and the community.
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