Beth O’Leary
In the heart of the Sunshine Coast, you’ll find Beth O’Leary doing something she never imagined growing up: running a thriving cheese business. A former nurse with no formal background in agriculture, Beth now leads Woombye Cheese Company, a nationally acclaimed artisan producer known for its award-winning wheels (including a world silver medallist!).
Her love for cheese didn’t come from childhood memories or family tradition; it came from something deeper. “I feel quite whimsical about cheese,” Beth laughs. “It’s romantic. It’s slow. It brings people together.” That belief led to a bold decision in 2019: to pack up life, pull the kids out of school, and spend 13 months travelling around Australia with her family, visiting over 30 cheese makers. “It was the most beautiful time of connection,” she says. “And it confirmed that this was something I wanted to do.”
Soon after they returned home, fate (and a little timing) led Beth and her husband to Woombye Cheese and they haven’t looked back since.
What drives Beth today is more than just great cheese (although that’s a biggie). It’s community, connection, and celebrating the people who make it all happen. “Our cheesemakers are artists. They live and breathe this work, even making cheese on weekends because they love it that much,” she says. Beth sees her role as amplifying their brilliance: building partnerships with local producers, telling the stories behind each product, and sharing the joy of cheese with new audiences through workshops, school visits and masterclasses.
Education is a big part of Beth’s mission. “We’re where wine was 20 years ago,” she explains. “People still feel unsure talking about cheese, but you don’t have to be a connoisseur to enjoy it. Just say where it’s from. That’s all it takes to start a conversation.”
And when she’s not championing Australian cheese at festivals or teaching school kids how it's made, Beth’s working to make the business better for people and the planet, through staff support, local networks, and sustainability improvements like waste-to-farm recycling and smarter water use.
Her advice for aspiring cheese makers? “We need you,” she says. “It’s such a niche world, and we’d love to see more young people get involved. Bring your passion and we’ll help you learn the rest.”
From slow living to global awards, Beth’s journey is proof that it’s never too late to fall in love with something new and turn that love into something extraordinary.