Where Does Culver's Source Its Cheese Curds?

Culver's, one of the most popular midwestern fast food chains, is known for its iconic ButterBurgers, creamy frozen custard, and of course, the mouthwatering cheese curds. As a restaurant with origins in the Dairy State, it makes sense that Culver's would offer regional favorites made with ingredients sourced from local farms. Its beloved cheese curds, for instance, are made by Master Cheesemakers at LaGrander's Hillside Dairy in Stanley, Wisconsin.

The first Culver's opened in 1984 in the small town of Sauk City, Wisconsin. While the ButterBurger was its signature item from the start, cheese curds weren't added to the menu until 1997. In 2015, Culver's even created National Cheese Curd Day to celebrate this tasty snack (make sure to mark your calendars for October 15). To inspire even more cheese curd pride, the chain also created the cutest Culver's fast food mascot named Curdis the Curd Nerd.

As the exclusive provider of Culver's cheese curds, LaGrander's Hillside Dairy is currently operated by three generations of cheesemakers who have perfected the fresh cheese, starting with high quality milk sourced from local farmers. The curds are then breaded and fried by the Culver's team for crunchy perfection. If you love this fried snack, check out other fast food chains where you can order cheese curds, as well!

Like many farms in Wisconsin (and Culver's), LaGrander's Hillside Dairy is a family-owned and operated business. Master Cheesemaker Ryan LaGrander's grandparents, Dannie and Lorraine LaGrander, purchased Hillside Dairy in 1960. Operations would begin with 8,000 pounds of canned milk received daily, which produced 800 pounds of cheese. In 1993, Dannie and Lorraine's son, Randy, alongside his wife Sandy, took over the business. The two will eventually be replaced by their sons Ryan and Joe, who currently run daily operations. Today, LaGrander's receives over 800,000 pounds of fresh milk daily from 140 local farmers.

Ryan followed in his father's footsteps by earning his Master Cheesemaker license, a certification program offered only in Wisconsin that requires 10 years of cheesemaking experience, as well as a three year apprenticeship and passing a written exam. However, while his dad's certification is in cheddar, Ryan's is in a relatively new category for Master Cheesemaking: cheese curds.