Meet the Producer: Greg Parham

When Greg Parham started J&M Foods in 1987, he introduced the first cheese straw to the marketplace. Today the competition is fierce. “We used to enjoy the luxury of being the only cheese straw maker in the marketplace, but now I think there are 28 others,” he says. “But we’re lucky because we’re the oldest cheese straw manufacturer in the U.S.”

And J&M Foods makes much more. Though the family-owned business began with his mother’s cheese straw recipe, it has grown to include a variety of snacks and appetizers, from a range of flavored cheese straws to cookies and wine biscuits. Ultimately, what sets this producer apart is the ingredients. Each variety of Cheese Straws, from Cheddar and Asiago to Bleu and Jalapeno, uses real cheese sourced as locally as possible. All of J&M’s products are trans-fat–free and made using natural ingredients.

Parham shares more with foodspring.com:

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What is your favorite flavor in your line and why?

Cheddar, just because that’s the one we’ve had the longest. It’s what I was raised on and that will never go away. And it has a little cayenne pepper to it so it has zing and deep cheddar flavor.

Who is your culinary idol and why?

I like Anthony Bourdain. We have the same taste in food. He’s adventuresome. I like his whole take on how to prepare food and what to eat. Plus, he’s a great writer.

What’s your guilty food pleasure?

Diet coke. Or mayonnaise.

With so many snacks in your product line, is there an official snack time every day?

When you pull into our parking lot, you know what we’re cooking that day. Blue cheese day is a tough day, although I’m a big blue cheese fan! Typically every morning I get a cup of coffee, get situated and then two hours or so later jump up go out into production and sample what’s coming off the oven at the time. The unfortunate thing is it’s not good for your waistline!

Best meal ever?

Blue Ribbon [in New York City]. I go every year. The first time I went, the waiter suggested I have the fried chicken. I said, “I’m a southern boy. I didn’t come here to eat fried chicken.” He said, “If you don’t like it, you don’t have to pay for it.” It was so good, we’ve ended up ordering it twice so far.

If you weren’t making snack foods, what would you be doing instead?

I’d be a Formula One race-car driver.

Aside from your products, what three items can you always find in your kitchen?

Fritos or tortilla chips, peanut butter and Diet Coke. –Denise Shoukas

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