News
November 20, 2025Governor Hochul Announces Belgioioso Cheese to Invest $23 Million for Expansion Projects in Capital Region and Southern Tier
Governor Kathy Hochul today announced that Wisconsin-based cheesemaker BelGioioso Cheese will upgrade and expand operations in New York State. The company will invest over $23 million at its facilities in Glenville, Schenectady County, and Campbell, Steuben County, committing to creating at least 30 new jobs between the two sites. In addition to the direct job creation goals, this expansion will also see the utilization of an additional 100 million pounds of milk from New York State’s dedicated dairy farmers. Empire State Development has agreed to support the project with up to $1.5 million in performance-based Excelsior Jobs Program tax credits.
“This decision by BelGioioso to further expand its operations upstate marks yet another chapter in New York’s agricultural success story,” Governor Hochul said. “New York’s dairy industry serves as a crucial economic engine for our state, and we are grateful to this successful company for its continued commitment to these communities, and to area dairy farmers, who always work hard to help position our state as one of the nation’s top dairy producers.”
Founded in 1979, BelGioioso Cheese operates eleven plants that make over 30 varieties of Italian cheeses. At the 2025 Great New York State Fair Dairy Competition, BelGioioso brands took home seven medals, including three First Place Gold medals for Polly-O Low Moisture Whole Milk String Cheese, Polly-O New York Style Impastata, and Cappiello Natural Hickory Smoked Fresh Mozzarella.
In 2020, BelGioioso Cheese completed construction on a $25 million, 96,000-square-foot cheese plant in the Glenville Business and Technology Park in the Capital Region. The Glenville campus includes a manufacturing plant, and a distribution center built in 2022 – both of which will continue to facilitate growth. Schenectady County Metroplex Development Authority has agreed to provide a $150,000 capital grant to support this project, and a sales tax exemption for construction materials and supplies.
In 2021, the company purchased the Polly-O brand and its plant in Campbell in the Southern Tier. The Campbell facility was constructed in 1938 and as part of this project is undergoing upgrades to its existing infrastructure, continuing modernization efforts, including the addition of product lines to allow continued growth. The Steuben County Industrial Development Agency is also providing assistance for the project. Now underway, the upgrades at both facilities are expected to be completed by late 2027.
