<P> COON is the trademark of a cheddar cheese produced by Warrnambool Cheese and Butter company in Australia . It was first launched in 1935 by Fred Walker . </P> <P> LD&D Foods (who also hold a stake in the company) were the previous operator of the brand until it was sold back to WCB in 2015 . </P> <P> Coon cheese is named after its American creator, Edward William Coon (1871--1934) of Philadelphia, who patented a method, subsequently known as the Cooning process, for fast maturation of cheese via high temperature and humidity . Former manufacturer Kraft, and later Dairy Farmers and National Foods, have vigorously defended the trademark . </P> <P> E.W. Coon was the grandson of Amherst Coon (1795--1877), a farmer born in Russia, New York, who married Sally Betsey Treat in 1822 . His sons Mattison (b . 1823) and Ephraim Coon (b . 1832) were described in 1893 as having been in the butter and cheese business together at 29 South Water Street, Philadelphia, for more than thirty years . Ephraim's son Edward Willie Coon was born on 30 July 1871, and had taken out at least one cheese patent by 1912 . </P>

Where did the name coon cheese come from