Karikaas - Care, community and award-winning Dutch-style cheese

In March 1984, Karin and Rients Rypma embarked on their journey to New Zealand after completing a cheese-making course in Holland. New Zealand provided a clean environment and water that fostered their wishes to establish a Dutch-style cheese business. They settled in Loburn, North Canterbury and it is here that Karikaas was born.

In 2004, nearly 20 years after the business opened, Diana and Alan Hawkins together with John and Heather Lamers took over the reins. Diana is a food technologist by training. This background meant Karikaas had a strong foundation to continue their journey of producing quality Dutch-style cheese. Today, 20 years after taking over, Diana remains the general manager of the multi-award-winning business.

A part of their arrangement as new owners of Karikaas was keeping the previous staff employed. Diana acknowledges this as a valuable component in their ability to continue making the quality Dutch-style cheese the Rypma family developed.

She elaborates, “We kept all of the staff that were already here, here. It was important for me to have them, as although I knew how to make cheese, I needed to know how Karikaas made Karikaas cheese.’’

The willingness of staff to stay on board, and the low staff turnover rate that continues to this day is a testament to the friendly values that Karikaas upholds.

The community aspect of the business is a big contributor to their success.  Diana explains that Dutch Cheesemakers in New Zealand are very open; “We share our information, we support one another” which has allowed the industry to collectively grow and improve over the years. However, this does not take away from the competitive nature amongst the cheese producers.

Karikaas has gathered a healthy range of accolades in their time, acquiring medals in the annual NZ Champions of Cheese awards every year since 2005. In 2022 Karikaas won the AsureQuality Champion Dutch Style Cheese Award for their Vintage Gouda. This very prestigious award *is one that NZ Dutch-Style cheese Makers always have a keen eye on.

But it is the Champion Cheesemaker award granted in 2010 to one of their late cheesemakers, Hank Lettink, that stands out to Diana. Hank worked for Karikaas for 30 years and is recognized for his attention to detail and commitment to his work. This award is indicative of both Hanks' dedicated character, and the nurturing company that allowed him to achieve this feat.

No aspects of their business activities are an afterthought for Karikaas, including sustainability. Sustainable practices are occurring through all levels of production, from large efforts such as reusing all water from the factory to grow trees and optimising their cheese to have zero additives, to everyday movements such as turning off all devices when not in use and using all pieces of copy paper at least twice.

They are the providers of yoghurt to all souvlaki food providers in Christchurch, which they sell in buckets. These purchasers are given credit for returning the buckets to Karikaas, which are reused in their next dispatch of yoghurt. Not only are Karikaas minimising waste, but they are also relieving their customers of packaging costs, proving they go above and beyond. For Karikaas, “Sustainability has simply been a part of the Ethos since the beginning”.

Karikaas demonstrates how quality products materialise out of caring for one another and caring for the environment. Doing what is supportive of their community, the land, and their resources has guided Karikaas in their journey to crafting the Dutch-Cheese excellence that they produce today.

Find out more about Karikaas - and order award-winning NZ cheese - by visiting their website.