Los Angeles International Dairy Competition Judges

Lissa Knudsen, MPH, CCP, is the Acting Executive Director of the New Mexico Cheese Guild and a lifelong advocate for handcrafted local food. Her deep-rooted understanding of artisanal cheese began in Paso Robles, California; as the daughter of a veterinarian, she gained early expertise in animal science and nutrition through 4H and FFA. She later formalized this technical foundation with Animal Science coursework at Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo.

Lissa now holds both a Bachelor’s and a Master’s degree in Public Health, specializing in nutrition and food sovereignty. Her work in public health—ranging from school nutrition initiatives to community garden advocacy—informs her holistic approach to the artisan cheese industry. A Certified Cheese Professional (CCP) and professional cheesemonger, Lissa was named to Culture Magazine’s 2025 “Hot List.”

Her contributions to the field bridge the gap between policy and education, notably through her successful championship of raw milk legislation in Albuquerque in 2023 and the development of K-12 flavor science curricula. Lissa brings a rare perspective to the 2026 judging panel, evaluating dairy through the combined lenses of animal science, sensory excellence, and community impact.

Sarah Masoni is Director of Product and Process Development at OSU’s Food Innovation Center in Portland, Oregon, with deep expertise in dairy product development and sensory evaluation. She works closely with producers to refine quality, flavor, and process performance across cheese, cultured products, and frozen desserts. Known for her practical industry insight and collaborative style, Sarah supports innovation while upholding craftsmanship, making her a trusted contributor to dairy evaluation and judging.

Kristina Zontini is the founder of Super Secret Ice Cream and a three-time James Beard Award nominee. Known for her dedication to scratch-made ice cream and showcasing the local food system, Kristina has built a beloved shop that balances culinary excellence with a commitment to creating sustainable, happy jobs for her community.

Carrie Stenerson aka Justice of the Cheese is an LA-based cheesemonger/cheese freelancer, mutual aid organizer, cheese documentarian, and self-proclaimed cheese clown. Carrie has been a cheesemonger since 2019 and wears many hats as a cheese professional for-hire across the globe.

Alana Pedalino serves as the managing editor of Culture: The Word on Cheese. Her work has been featured in Bon Appétit, Chicken Soup for the Soul, etc. She loves to write, cook, and kayak. Learn more about her at alanapedalino.com.

Anthony Stevens is the Director of Special Events with more than 8 years of experience in the ice cream industry. Alongside leading large-scale events, Anthony is involved in ice cream flavor development, where he evaluates flavor balance, texture, mix-ins, and overall quality from concept through production. His work in customer relations and new distributor logistics has given him broad exposure to a wide range of products, production standards, and consumer expectations. With a trained palate and hands-on experience across both creative and operational sides of the industry, Anthony brings a well-rounded, quality-driven perspective to ice cream judging.

Emilia D’Albero, ACS CCP is a national champion cheesemonger and educator with 10 years of experience working in cheese & specialty grocery. She has worked behind some of NYC’s largest and most well-known cheese counters, and is currently the Sales & Marketing Manager for Formaticum. In 2025, Emilia became the first American to earn the title of Meilleure Fromagère du Monde (World’s Best Cheesemonger) by winning the gold medal in France’s Mondial du Fromage competition.

John Braga is a wholesale cheesemonger with ten years of experience in the cheese industry. He joined Murray’s in 2016 and rose through the ranks during his six-year tenure. After a stint at the French Cheese Board, he left the shop to become a wholesale cheesemonger at Food Matters Again, all while documenting his adventures on his Instagram account, @oqueijonista. Braga has also written dozens of articles for two Brazilian magazines, Profissão Queijeira and Revista do Queijo. Most recently, he was invited for the second time to serve as a supreme judge at Brazil’s largest cheese competition, Mundial do Queijo, as well as a judge at France’s Le Mondial du Fromage.

Kain Marzalado is a cheese professional residing from Chicago, Illinois. Since 2012 he has held numerous roles in the industry and has worked alongside such prestigous organizations as the American Cheese Society and IDDBA. He served as Judge of the Los Angeles International Dairy Competition in 2023 and is honored to preside as Chair of the competition in 2024.

Phil is an American Cheese Society (ACS) Certified Cheese Professional (2014), and resident of Oak Park, IL. He has 14 years of experience as a Cheese Monger with Whole Foods Market in the Midwest Region. He competed in the Cheese Monger Invitational (2016, 2017, 2018, 2019) and is honored to have been selected as a judge for the historic and prestigious Los Angeles International Dairy Competition.

Agela is the President and Program Manager for the Cheese Culture Coalition, a nonprofit dedicated to making the cheese industry more inclusive and equitable through education and grant programs for black, Indigenous, and People of Colour (BIPOC) in cheese and the greater dairy and specialty food industries. She writes a column for Culture magazine and is a Guilde Internationale des Fromagers member. Agela lives in Chicago and is the caretaker of two cats and a sourdough starter.

Courtney C. Johnson is co-founder of Street Cheese, a mobile cheese shop founded in 2020 to make local and artisanal cheeses accessible to more people in her community. An American Cheese Society Certified Cheese Professional and Certified Cheese Sensory Evaluator, Courtney is also Executive Director of the Washington State Cheesemakers Association and an adjunct faculty member at Seattle Central College’s Seattle Culinary Academy, where she teaches cheese and lacto-fermentation theory. A former academic with a PhD in German Literature, Film & Media, Courtney is a passionate curd nerd who has run cheese counters around the Seattle metropolitan area since 2015. Courtney has placed first (2023) and second (2025) in the Cheesemonger Invitational: Masters competition in New York, seventh (2023) in the Concours Mondial du Meilleur Fromager in Tours, France. This September, she will become the second person to compete a second time for Team USA at the Concours Mondial du Meilleur Fromager.

Lisa Marie Lopez is a Business Development Manager at Quesos Navarro. Before entering the cheese world, she spent over a decade working in the healthcare sector. In 2016, while still employed full-time, Lisa began selling raw milk cheeses part-time at a farmer’s market. This is the moment that sparked a transformative journey in her career. To understand more about cheesemaking, Lisa pursued cheese education relentlessly by taking several online workshops and participated in over a dozen hands-on raw milk cheesemaking classes, eventually earning a certification from the Academy of Cheese. In 2022, she quit her office job to apprentice in creameries across the U.S. Lisa’s passion extends to community outreach, notably as the former Social Director for The Cheese Culture Coalition (2021-2024). There, she championed cheese education for BIPOC students and amplified diverse voices in the industry. Her commitment is also evident through volunteering at the American Cheese Society Judging and Competition, Massachusetts Cheese Guild Festival, and working as an ambassador for businesses like Rogue Creamery, Forever Cheese, Quesos Navarro, and Foods From Spain. From weekend seller to full-time professional, Lisa exemplifies the transformative power of pursuing one’s passion in the cheese industry.

David Phillips is a Certified Cheese Professional(TM) and a Cheese State University Cheese Scholar. An occasional homebrewer, he conducts beer and cheese pairing events in the Chicago area and serves on the board of the Chicago Beer Society. He is also a veteran cheesemonger and cheese industry writer. He is a contributing editor at Cheeseprofessor.com and a former newspaper reporter.

Erika Kubick is the cheesemonger-turned-preacher behind_@cheesesedeath, a website, social media channel, and book devoted to educating, exciting, and empowering cheese lovers everywhere. She launched Cheese Sex Death as a blog in 2015, and has since amassed an international following of 630k. Her mission is to revolutionize the concept of eating cheese into a familiar ritual; an offering that you can enjoy every day. Her first book Cheese Sex Death: A Bible for the Cheese Obsessed was published in 2021.

Genelle Brooks-Petty is co-founder of ALL CHILL, Inc, a hip-hop ice cream shop, manufacturer, and caterer based in the historical Leimert Park neighborhood of Los Angeles. Serving culture, community and cream with a dose of memorabilia and rare artifacts, the shop offers a combination of classics and creative concoctions made with the best ingredients for a super premium ice cream experience. She is also the principal designer of BPC Interior Design, a Los Angeles-based design firm servicing institutional, contract and residential clients. Her work in both businesses bridges gaps, as she aims to foster community development through design.

Genelle is a graduate of Howard University’s School of Business, and she holds a Master of Interior Architecture from the UCLA Extension/ California State Polytechnic University, Pomona joint study program. She is an associate member of AlA, a member of SoCal NOMA and AWA+D. She currently serves on the boards of SCOPE-LA (Strategic Concepts in Organizing and Policy Education), BUILT Community Land Trust, Creative Types, SoulLife Foundation, and the Marina del Rey Design Control Board.

Arthur Keeton is a dairy specialist and resident of Chino Hills, CA. He brings over 30 years of experience in the dairy industry to this year’s Los Angeles International Dairy Competition. As the owner of I & A Lab, Inc., he ensures that his customers in CA, NM, TX and AZ consistently enjoy high quality testing services and personalized consultations to offer their best products to market. Arthur has also given multiple talks on dairy safety through the fair’s educational program.

Jill has been a long-time fan and attendee of the Los Angeles County Fair. She grew up in the Los Angeles County school district, where every student was given a ticket to attend the fair. Jill served as a dairy products judge at the LA County Fair starting in the early 1990s while working as a microbiologist at the world’s largest cheese factory at the time. She continued her role as a fair judge after beginning her career with the California Department of Food and Agriculture’s Milk and Dairy Food Safety Branch in 2001 and continued to do so for several years thereafter. Jill remains with the Branch today and now serves as the Regional Supervisor. She looks forward to returning as a Dairy Products judge once again.

Sydney is a displaced New Yorker who’s been living in the Bay Area longer than she realizes. Raised on a classic diet of Froot Loops, Ben & Jerry’s, and Kraft Mac & Cheese (shapes only), it didn’t occur to her that making ice cream could be a career.

In 2020, she ditched her previous life in advertising and started Bad Walter’s Bootleg Ice Cream. What once was an illegal living room ice cream operation has now grown into a beloved and much-more-legal ice cream business. Sydney is now known for creating flavors with a heavy bend towards 90s nostalgia. That—and all her ice cream is made with real dairy but is lactose-free.

As VP of Development, Gabrielle Yacoob is the driving force that ensures perfection for all who step into Museum of Ice Cream spaces.

Armed with a degree in Communications from the University of Southern California, Gabrielle has dedicated her career to crafting spaces, narratives and offerings that ignite joy and kindle the flames of imagination for all visitors.