Meet the makers behind family-owned Don Froylan Creamery and learn more about their cheesemaking process and award-winning Mexican cheeses.
For our friends at Don Froylan Creamery in Salem, OR, cheesemaking is a family legacy. Since the late '90s, the Ochoa family has been crafting authentic Mexican cheeses using traditional techniques and high-quality ingredients.
After moving with his family to Oregon from Guadalajara in 1994, Froylan Ochoa couldn't find the Mexican cheeses he grew up eating. So, he started making them himself, dreaming of one day opening his own creamery. Though Froylan passed before realizing that dream, his family carried it forward—and after years of perfecting his recipes, they opened Don Froylan Creamery in his honor.
Today, Froylan's son Francisco and his wife, Lisa, own and operate the creamery. We caught up with them to talk about their business, their family's legacy, and the award-winning cheeses Francisco crafts alongside their team of cheesemakers.
NSM: What are you most proud of when it comes to the work you do?
FO & LO: We're proud to be a family-owned creamery hand-making authentic Mexican cheese. Over the last few years, we’ve grown considerably, but our cheese is still made with the same care, craftsmanship, and connection to our heritage as when we first started. We also take pride in preserving an important part of Mexican food culture while creating something meaningful here in Oregon. We're proud of our award-winning cheeses, and equally proud of the people who make them. Our team brings skill, dedication, and heart to the creamery every day. Many steps in our process are still done by hand, including stretching our queso Oaxaca. It's especially meaningful to see customers watch our cheesemakers work and understand that Mexican cheese deserves to be recognized, because we're not simply making cheese; we're sharing our culture and creating opportunities for our employees, our families, and our community.
NSM: What makes Don Froylan Creamery unique?
FO & LO: Our cheeses are rooted in tradition, but they also reflect the place we now call home. That combination of Mexican heritage, Oregon ingredients, family knowledge, and hands-on craftsmanship makes Don Froylan unique. Here in our creamery, we have a large viewing area to watch batches of Mexican queso made every day. Every cheese we produce is truly "Queso Hecho con Corazón."
NSM: What's your company's mission, and what motivates you?
FO & LO: Our mission is to honor our family's heritage, celebrate Mexican craftsmanship, and bring people together. What motivates me (Francisco) every day is knowing that we're carrying forward my father's dream. His name is on every package, so the quality of our cheese is deeply personal to us. We want every product bearing the Don Froylan name to represent freshness, integrity, and pride. We're also motivated by the opportunity to change the way Mexican cheese is seen in America. Mexican cheeses deserve the same appreciation, storytelling, and place of honor given to other great cheesemaking traditions from around the world.
NSM: What does it mean to you to be a local, family-owned creamery?
FO & LO: It means that our work is connected to real people. We know our employees, our dairy partners, our customers, and the community we serve. The decisions we make are not only business decisions, but they also affect families, including our own. Our Mexican heritage shapes everything we do; from the cheeses we make to the way we welcome people into the creamery. The techniques, flavors, and knowledge behind our cheeses have been passed down through generations. At the same time, our story is also an Oregon story. We're taking the traditions our family brought from Mexico and continuing them with local Oregon milk, a dedicated local team, and a new generation of our family. To me, that is what makes Don Froylan so special: we're preserving where we came from while building something for the future.
NSM: What has your partnership with New Seasons meant for your business and how has it affected your growth and/or values as a company?
FO & LO: Our partnership with New Seasons has allowed Don Froylan Creamery to introduce authentic Mexican cheese to more customers while remaining connected to our local roots. Having our products represented by a company that values local producers, quality ingredients, and the stories behind the food has been very meaningful. It has helped us grow our visibility and reach customers who may not have previously understood the variety, craftsmanship, and versatility of Mexican cheeses. Growth can create pressure to change how things are made, but this partnership has encouraged us to stay committed to our values. As we reach more customers, we remain focused on local milk, traditional methods, consistent quality, and the hands-on craftsmanship that defines Don Froylan.
Find these incredible local cheeses at Don Froylan Creamery in Salem, or at your neighborhood New Seasons.
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