Posted on 06/10/2014 2:47:14 PM PDT by Oldeconomybuyer
Gabe Luddy, fourth-generation cheesemaker at Vella Cheese Co. in Sonoma, makes his Dry Jack the same way his grandfather and great-grandfather did - he rolls and presses curds into large wheels of cheese, then brines and coats the wheels before sliding them onto wooden racks. There they age, from seven months to several years.
A U.S. Food & Drug Administration statement which became public last week puts this 83-year-old practice in doubt. In what the agency is calling a clarification, the FDA has declared that the wooden surfaces that cheesemakers around the world age cheeses on "cannot be adequately cleaned and sanitized." If the ruling holds, it won't just affect Sonoma Jack. The the Parmagiano-Reggiano you grate over your pasta might also be illegal.
At issue is the interpretation of the FDA's Current Good Manufacturing Practice regulations, which state, "All plant equipment and utensils shall be so designed and of such material and workmanship as to be adequately cleanable, and shall be properly maintained."
The cheese society's Weiser says her organization has been besieged by calls from cheesemakers, retailers and legislators.
Vella's Gabe Luddy is more blunt.
"We're talking about a crushing blow to the artisan cheese industry," he says. "For us replacing wood shelves would require a huge capital investment. I don't even know what we would switch to."
(Excerpt) Read more at sfgate.com ...
Now we have the “Parmesan Cheese Police.”
Now we have the “Parmesan Cheese Police.”
Our government is no longer useful to We the People.
Have people not been dying for centuries? And did not most of them eat cheese? QED.
ROFLMTO...if this ‘control mentality’ weren’t so scary it would be hilarious...but once in awhile we just can’t help ourselves. Thanks...good one.
you said: “Cheese is ...essentially a “living” substance,....”
Please note that the attorney general or some doo gooder will want a law passed that anyone who eats cheese or cuts a round of cheese into parts should be tried for murder!
When it oppresses my parm, it’s gone way too far!!!
Sure there is a way to sterilize wood without harming the wood or causing any health threats. It could be sterilized by gamma irradiation,. It would be expensive, but safe — but it would not be the old way, and would terrify the superstitious and scientifically illiterate.
It’s a good thing. First KKKalifornia then Wisconsin. Two Blue states. What a great time to start running ads.
They thunk rotten bugs would be so much better for you.
I was under the impression that wood offers better health characteristics than other surface types.
“I don’t think it’s political. Who benefits? This is the work of some utterly oblivious bureaucrat.”
It is not political; it is simply leftist. It is the same thing as schools banning sunscreen because a child “might eat it” when they will get sunburn without it.
This is the type of ruling that needs to be thrown in your cheese eating liberal friends face. Ask: How does this help the poor? How does this help anyone? Enjoy that Cheese whiz Obama voter
I really HATE big government, and liberals, and most bureaucrats!!
“Outlaw Parmesan”?
“What happened, citizen?”
“It was....it was The Parmesan Gang. They robbed the stagecoach!”
“Curse their curds! I’ll bring them to justice! Hi Ho Fondue and away!”
It’s very easy to see how some corporate cheese maker with political connections can easily benefit against small cheese makers.
Considering that most “artisan” foodmakers tend to be hippies or otherwise Liberal, voting accordingly, I don’t mind too much if they get a good first hand lesson in Democrat crony capitalism.
Maybe this guy should see if Kraft is hiring ...
Velveeta is irrelevant.
This story is about cheese.
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