How a Greek yiayia, green ants and a royal encounter shaped Kris Lloyd’s cheese legacy

Adelaide cheese maker Kris Lloyd AM can proudly say that not only is her artisan cheese fit for a King but that her cheese factory Woodside Cheese Wrights is the only place that produces a cheese with green ants on top!

Cheese fit for a King

In 2012, Penfold’s Magill Estate winery in South Australia was hosting the then-Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall, Camilla Parker-Bowles to view the best of South Australian food and wine products.

Artisan cheese maker Kris had also been invited and, along with other SA producers, had a display of her cheeses but with strict protocol instructions that the visiting royals did not sample food.

When the now-King Charles III called the now-Queen Camilla over to point out one of her cheeses called Monet that was decorated with flowers and asked questions about it, Kris was holding a plate and napkin and promptly responded with – “Would you like to try some?”

King Charles III responded with – “I thought you’d never ask,” she said.

“That was just amazing. I can now say the King has tried my cheese.”

Green ants on top

Kris admits her cheese making is ‘a bit unorthodox’ and wanted to develop cheese that complements and tells a story about Australian life.

Enter the Anthill – a goat’s cheese adorned with green ants, lemon myrtle, kaffir lime and lemongrass – an idea that was inspired by the late Scottish chef Jock Zonfrillo known for the show MasterChef, who personally called Kris to tell her about the delicacy of green ants.

Jock often used native Australian ingredients in his culinary designs, so he sent Kris a ‘live’ sample with instructions on how to store them before use.

“I remember him ringing me one day and he sent me live green ants in a nest,” she said.

“I had to deal with them by snap freezing. The sac of the abdomen has flavour. Our indigenous people pick them up and eat them.

“No-one else in the world is putting green ants on cheese, except for me.”

In 2016, Anthill cheese came 11^th from more than 3,000 entries, in a world cheese award held in Spain. At the time, Kris was also a judge at these awards but because her cheese was shortlisted, she had to step back from judging.

Award-winning cheese and US expansion

In 2024, Kris added another accolade to her cheese making journey by winning first prize at a world championship cheese contest in the US. The global competition attracted more than 3,000 entries and her cheese called Flower Power – a washed rind buffalo cheese – came first.

But that’s not all. Kris also came second and third with her Buffalo Persian Feta Lemon Myrtle and Persian Buffalo Feta.

Kris has just returned from Los Angeles and San Francisco to present her cheeses and new line of crackers to major retailers for further expansion in the US market. Her best-selling cheese is the Monet in the US – the one sampled by King Charles III – and it is sold by premium outlets in New York’s Madison Square Gardens.

It is a long way from 1998 when Kris left a successful corporate marketing career and took a punt to purchase a small cheese factory called Woodside Cheese Wrights located in the Adelaide Hills as a way of adding value to the family-owned winery Coriole in SA’s McLaren Vale wine region.

The fact that she had never made cheese did not stop her.

Transitioning to learn about cheesemaking was not easy in a male-dominated industry. Despite the many hurdles, Kris persevered and travelled to France, Italy and the UK determined to learn the art from the best in the industry and attended many cheese festivals to pick up tips.

Kris credits her Greek grandmother, who was born in Castellorizo, with introducing her to different food flavours when visiting Adelaide’s Central Market.

“My grandmother was a big part of my life,” Kris said. “She would take me to the market, and we would go stall to stall buying different cheeses.

“I loved all Greek cheeses. She taught me respect for food.”