Our People

Passionate about making delicious cheese.

Daniel Shields

AKA “the Big Cheese”

Daniel and wife Amy bought Barrys Bay Cheese in 2017 after working as the brand’s distributor for 5 years.  So when the opportunity arose to buy the business, they knew it was something special.  They’ve been fortunate enough to celebrate the company’s monumental 125th anniversary. Being part of such a longstanding business with a huge history in NZ food is quite an honour. With two businesses, three kids and two dogs, life is busy but there’s still time to head out on the bikes, go tramping or sneak away for an all too rare surf.

Pete Corbitt

Chief Cheesemaker

Pete has been passionately making cheese for the past 16 years. He started his career with Barrys Bay Cheese in their shop, selling cheese to eager customers and has grown his vast cheese knowledge from there. His strict attention to detail is what makes him so great at creating consistently great cheese, everyday. In past years, Pete has spent time jumping out of planes. In fact, he’s done over 10,000 jumps!

 

Craig Church

Cheesemaker, second-in-command

Winner of the “Aspiring Cheesemaker Award” at the 2015 NZ Champions of Cheese Award, Craig has been making cheese at Barrys Bay for 15 years. He loves making cheese - his favourite cheese to make is Havarti but his favourite cheese to eat is Aged Gouda! In his spare time he enjoys spending time with his family.

 

Kelsey Klaassen

Sales & Marketing Whiz

Want to talk about cheese? Kelsey loves chatting with customers - especially about cheese! Originally from Portland, OR, she was drawn to New Zealand’s vast outdoor playground. She is a food lover, traveller and runner, who keeps busy with her young family and working in the garden.

  

Judy Oldman

Accounts  Manager

Judy was born and raised in Canterbury.  She started with Barrys Bay in 2006 after working in other food manufacturing companies.  She’s very organised and with a long history at Barrys Bay, has a wealth of knowledge about the business. She loves the small, close-knit team environment and says you can’t beat fresh cut cheese - particularly Cheshire!  With plenty to keep her busy, spare time is normally spent with family, friends, or on the ‘block’ with a small flock of sheep, two dogs, and three resident magpies.

 

Michael Schionnemann

Factory Manager

Michael has an extensive history in food production and has worked around the world in various factory settings.  He is now happily settled in Canterbury with his family.