Peggy Smith is the co-founder of

Cowgirl Creamery Cowgirl Creamery is a company located in Point Reyes Station, California, which manufactures artisan cheeses. Founded in 1994, the company manufactures its own cheeses and sells other imported and domestic cheese and fine artisan foods. Its own ...

along with Sue Conley. Both women are credited with their role in developing Northern California's artisan cheese industry. In 2006, with Conley, she won a

James Beard award The James Beard Foundation Awards are annual awards presented by the James Beard Foundation to recognize chefs, restaurateurs, authors and journalists in the United States. They are scheduled around James Beard's May 5 birthday. The media award ...

in recognition for "significant and lasting achievements and contributions to the

food Food is any substance consumed by an organism for nutritional support. Food is usually of plant, animal, or fungal origin, and contains essential nutrients, such as carbohydrates, fats, proteins, vitamins, or minerals. The substance is inge ...

and

beverage industry The drink industry (or drinks industry, also known as the beverage industry) produces drinks, in particular ready to drink products. Drink production can vary greatly depending on the product being made. ManufacturingDrinks.com explains that "bot ...

for ten or more years."

Early life

Smith attended the University of Tennessee, where she met Conley. In 1976, the two women moved to San Francisco, where both took jobs in the restaurant industry. Smith worked at Noe Valley Bar and Grill in San Francisco and Mount View Grill in Calistoga before she was hired to cook at the new upstairs cafe at Chez Panisse. She worked at Chez Panisse for 17 years. After leaving Chez Panisse, Smith moved to

Point Reyes Point Reyes (, meaning "Point of the Kings") is a prominent cape and popular Northern California tourist destination on the Pacific coast. Located in Marin County, it is approximately west-northwest of San Francisco. The term is often applied ...

, California, where she and Conley founded Tomales Bay Foods with the intent of marketing and distributing foods made in the West Marin area.

Work

Smith co-founded Cowgirl Creamery, a manufacturer and distributor of artisan cheese, along with Conley. They founded the cheese-making company as a way of creating a product which showcased the organic milk produced by Albert Straus at

Straus Family Creamery Straus Family Creamery is a California organic dairy, located in Marshall in Marin County. They produce whole milk, reduced and non-fat milk (pasteurized, but not homogenized), butter, cheese, ice cream and yogurt. Their milk is used in the prod ...

: "We saw the need to showcase great quality organic milk. The farm economy could not survive the state it was in, so we saw a need to preserve land in agriculture." Smith is a member of the California Artisan Cheese Guild. With Conley, she wrote ''Cowgirl Creamery Cooks''. In 2016, Smith and Conley sold Cowgirl Creamery to Emmi, a Swiss dairy firm.

Bibliography

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Peggy Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Cheesemakers 20th-century American businesspeople 21st-century American businesspeople American artisans