Heartisan Foods, a manufacturer and the largest online U.S. seller of specialty and flavored cheese, is buying North Country Packaging. 

The deal will triple Heartisan’s manufacturing capacity, support the fast-growing Cheese Brothers online brand with expanded fulfilment capabilities, and allow Heartisan to launch new, innovative products across cheese spreads and cheese curds, both of which help support Heartisan’s growth in the fast-growing cheese snack category.

North Country’s co-founders, Kendall Goossen (taking a senior executive role at Heartisan) and his wife Maria will retain a significant stake in the combined entity.

“We’ve known the Goossens and their colleagues at North Country for years and we share the exact same vision,” said Gene Graf, CEO of Heartisan. “The added capacity comes at just the right time, given that we’re currently running our production facilities at full steam. With 32 different North Country cheese spreads and cheese curds to choose from, Heartisan’s customers now have a different flavor to enjoy every day of any month.”

North Country’s products range from tomato and sweet basil curds to habanero ghost pepper spreads. “This deal is the perfect way to accelerate growth, speed up innovation, and expand cutting-edge products at both companies,” said Goossen. T

o finance the purchase of North Country, Ronin is using a $10 million revolving credit line established for Heartisan when the latter was formed in 2021. Ronin created Heartisan through the simultaneous acquisition and merger of flavored & smoked cheese specialists Red Apple Cheese, Barron County Cheese, and the direct-to-consumer eCommerce business Cheese Brothers.