Well they won't open in time for National Grilled Cheese Month, but the Fifth Town Artisan Cheese Company will still be worth checking out when their doors do open this May (who says you can't have grilled cheese outside of April anyway? It's not like wearing white after Labor Day).

Located in Prince Edward County in Picton, Ontario, Fifth Town will use their 4200 square foot dairy processing, retail and educational facility to produce handmade cheeses that promote environmental and social responsibility. That may seem like a tall order for cheese to live up to, however the company has already set its sights on becoming platinum certified under the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) program.

Fifth Town Artisan Cheese will focus on producing goat and sheep milk based cheeses made from locally sourced milk. The fresh cheeses will range from soft ripened bloomy rind to hard aged cheeses. Not only will the company aim to use local products to create the cheese, the facility was also constructed with sustainability in mind. The geothermal, solar, Bull Frog Power and onsite bio-wetland for the treatment of whey and grey water will equal a 67 per cent savings in energy costs and 23 tons of greenhouse gases. Once processing energy savings are included, the company expects that number to double. Fifth Town has also already met the water conservation targets they set, and the wetland technology will produce clean, reusable water from the whey water and gray wash water.

The facility isn't slated for opening until May 19, but hit the jump for a sneak peak of what you can expect and stay tuned for more information about specific cheeses to be sold and how to order them.

» Fifth Town Artisan Cheese Company (Official Site)