Elberton farmer, cheese maker and local food advocate Tim Young took home the grand prize from the 2014 Flavor of Georgia Food Product Contest on March 18. The annual contest, conducted by the University of Georgia Center for Agribusiness and Economic Development, is a chance for food businesses to showcase their new products.

Young owns Nature’s Harmony Farm, and his grand-prize-winning Georgia Gold Clothbound Cheddar Cheese is made from milk produced by the farm’s herd of Jersey dairy cows. The cheese is hand crafted and aged for six to 12 months in the farm’s cheese caves.

The cheese was one of 35 Georgia products selected as finalists in the 2014 Flavor of Georgia Food Product Contest. The products were selected from more than 125 entries from across the state—one of the largest contest fields in the competition’s history.

In addition to the grand prize, Nature’s Harmony Georgia Gold took first place in the competition’s dairy category.

Gov. Nathan Deal and Agriculture Commissioner Gary Black announced the category and grand prize winners as part of Georgia Agriculture Awareness Day at the Georgia Freight Depot in Atlanta.

Young hopes that his Flavor of Georgia win will bring attention to Georgia’s burgeoning artisan cheese industry.

Georgia Gold Clothbound Cheddar Cheese is one of a handful of artisan cheeses Young makes on his farm. A marketing professional turned farmer, Young has spent the past seven years refining his farm business. He and his wife, Liz, decided to focus exclusively on cheese production shortly after the birth of their son in 2013.

Nature’s Harmony cheeses are available at restaurants and artisan food shops across metro Atlanta and at the Young’s on-farm store in Elberton.

Showcase events like the 2014 Flavor of Georgia competition help entrepreneurs spread the word about their products. Many have landed spots in regional and national grocery chains like Whole Foods, Fresh Market, Earth Fare, Kroger and Harvey’s.

The contest is sponsored by the UGA Center for Agribusiness and Economic Development in the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences in partnership with the Center of Innovation for Agribusiness, Office of Governor Nathan Deal, Walton EMC, the Georgia Department of Agriculture, the Georgia Agribusiness Council and the UGA department of food science and technology.