Thank you you for your interest in Back Forty Artisan Cheese. My name is James Keith but most people call me Jim. I have been making fine sheep milk cheeses here in the beautiful Lanark Highlands since 2002.

Back Forty began as a project in self-sufficiency for me and my wife Elizabeth Harker in 1999. After much discussion, we decided that sheep would be a good all-round homestead animal for our farm adventure - larger than a cranberry and smaller than a buffalo. And so we started our flock and set about making fiber products from the fleeces, selling meat and breeding stock, and making cheeses from the milk.

Once I started making cheese, I became totally hooked on what seemed a magical alchemy. I began learning as much as I could, wherever I could, and experimenting and developing my craft along the way. And soon my cheeses were in high demand. Elizabeth and I joined our first farmers' market in 2003 and began selling our cheeses to local fans. Back Forty Artisan Cheese has come a long way since then and I am proud to say my cheeses have been served to visiting dignitaries and heads of state, at Rideau Hall, and are sold in the finest shops and restaurants. Back Forty cheeses have earned numerous accolades and been featured in a host of newspaper and magazine articles as well as radio and television programs - my Highland Blue even made the cover of the LCBO's Food and Drink magazine. I want to express my deep gratitude to my loyal customers and supporters.

Elizabeth passed away in 2007. Since that time I have continued Back Forty Artisan Cheese on my own. This site is dedicated to Elizabeth Harker and her amazing spirit, without whom none of this would have been possible.