Shelburne Farms' clothbound cheddar has a bright yellow color because it's made from the milk of cows that graze on grasses high in beta-carotene.
Posted on 11/09/2013 4:31:29 AM PST by NYer
Shelburne Farms' clothbound cheddar has a bright yellow color because it's made from the milk of cows that graze on grasses high in beta-carotene.
The news from Kraft last week that the company is ditching two artificial dyes in some versions of its macaroni and cheese products left me with a question.
Why did we start coloring cheeses orange to begin with? Turns out there's a curious history here.
In theory, cheese should be whitish — similar to the color of milk, right?
Well, not really. Centuries ago in England, lots of cheeses had a natural yellowish-orange pigment. The cheese came from the milk of certain breeds of cows, such as Jersey and Guernsey. Their milk tends to be richer in color from beta-carotene in the grass they eat.
So, when the orange pigment transferred to the cow's milk, and then to the cheese, it was considered a mark of quality.
"Cows on the grassy hillsides of Shelburne Farms in Vermont."
But here's where the story gets interesting.
Cheese expert Paul Kindstedt of the University of Vermont explains that back in the 17th century, many English cheesemakers realized that they could make more money if they skimmed off the cream — to sell it separately or make butter from it.
But in doing so, most of the color was lost, since the natural orange pigment is carried in the fatty cream.
So, to pass off what was left over — basically low-fat cheese made from white milk — as a high-quality product, the cheesemakers faked it.
"The cheesemakers were initially trying to trick people to mask the white color [of their cheese]," explains Kindstedt.
They began adding coloring from saffron, marigold, carrot juice and later, annatto, which comes from the seeds of a tropical plant. (It's also what Kraft will use to color its new varieties of macaroni and cheese.)
The devious cheesemakers of the 17th century used these colorings to pass their products off as the full-fat, naturally yellowish-orange cheese that Londoners had come to expect.
The tradition of coloring cheese then carried over in the U.S. Lots of cheesemakers in Indiana, Ohio, Wisconsin and New York have a long history of coloring cheddar.
The motivation was part tradition, part marketing to make their cheeses stand out. There was another reason, too: It helped cheesemakers achieve a uniform color in their cheeses.
But Kindstedt says it's not a tradition that ever caught on in New England dairy farms.
"Here in New England there was a disdain for brightly colored cheese," Kindstedt says.
And that's why to this day, we still see lots of naturally white cheddar cheese from places such as Vermont.
With the boom in the artisanal food movement, we're starting to see more cheese produced from grass-fed cows.
And as a result, we may notice the butterlike color in summer cheeses — similar to what the 17th century Londoners ate.
"We absolutely see the color changes when the cows transition onto pasture in early May," cheesemaker Nat Bacon of Shelburne Farms in Vermont wrote to us in an email. He says it's especially evident "in the whey after we cut the curd, and also in the finished cheese. Both get quite golden in color, kind of like straw, with the beta-carotenes the cows are eating in the fresh meadow grasses."
our free range chickens lay eggs with very yellow, almost orange yokes. I've read that professional egg farms feed their chickens a derivative from the marigold, high is saffron, to keep the yokes yellow.
There is a trade off for free range chickens. We loose many to predators.
My cardiologist does not want me to eat foods high in K. I have an artificial heart valve which requires very thin blood to keep me from having a heart attack or stroke.
I am on a high dosage of warfarin (rat poison). So, when a blood test shows too much thinning, I am allowed to eat some broccoli, or CHEETOS!
Thank you, fascinating.
Fromage to age, cheese production has been a gouda cottage industry ....
Warfarin
Is that a Call of Duty game?
“The Devious Cheesemakers” is a good name for a band.
"I want to buy some cheese."
Thanks for this. I try to eat as healthy as possible because well, Obamacare sure ain’t gonna be there to have our backs. Never heard of this before, will check the links.
And then it began, LOL.
Very funny skit and aggravating at the same time.
Is that a Call of Duty game?
That would be rat poison.
Here’s a link to some information from the National Institutes of Health about coumadin and vitamin K (including a list of foods) . . . I think it’s saying that you can eat foods rich in vitamin K, as long as you are consistent from day to day . . . because your dosage of coumadin can be adjusted to be in balance with your diet, including your intake of vitamin K, and levels are validated through regular blood tests.
http://www.cc.nih.gov/ccc/patient_education/drug_nutrient/coumadin1.pdf
What should I remember about warfarin (Coumadin) and vitamin K?
1. Follow your prescription exactly, and keep your follow-up appointments for blood tests such as the INR/PT. Warfarin (Coumadin) is a very important drug for you.
2. Keep vitamin K intake constant from day to day because warfarin (Coumadin) interacts with vitamin K in your body.
3. Avoid herbal products and dietary supplements that may affect vitamin K and warfarin (Coumadin) unless approved by a qualified health care provider.
Years ago, a former neighbor would put about 100 chickens out in his pasture every spring; they roosted in the barn. By fall he’d only have 20 or 30 left. When he would put them out, I’d rib him about having just refilled his coyote feeder.
No; Warfarin is a Star Fleet officer.
This is an interesting piece. I am a cheese eater.
My wife somehow bought some Cabot Vermont extra sharp cheddar. Wow!! it is goood. It is white.
The question in my mind was...... how or why do they make it white?
Now I know.
Was at the supermarket today, and checked out the brand of Cheddar. While it was made in Northern Ireland, the company that produces it is actually Danish! The company is named Uhrenholt, and the brand is Emborg.
Absolutely. The flesh of true ‘free range’ chickens is reddish=purple from eating worms.
Be leery of fake ‘free range’ chickens with white meat.
Absolutely. The flesh of true ‘free range’ chickens is reddish=purple from eating worms.
Be leery of fake ‘free range’ chickens with white meat.
Man in crowd: He said, “Blessed are the cheesemakers.”
woman in crowd: “Cheesemakers? What’s so blessed about them?”
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.
