Free Republic

www.registerguard.com | © The Register-Guard, Eugene, Oregon January 12, 2004 Cheese only, if you please: Heavy-hitting cheese maker goes to bat for a name that tens of thousands simply call "home" By Winston RossThe Register-Guard TILLAMOOK - Long before Wal-Mart ruled retail, before Rupert Murdoch bought broadcast media, 10 dairy farmers in the lush green pastures of the Tillamook Valley decided that bigger was better. They threw in $25 per factory and in 1909 formed the Tillamook County Creamery Association, makers of the now world-famous Tillamook Cheese. In the past decade, the company has gone from a well-known regional...

Cheese war is heating up in Tillamook (Bay City-AP) -- Since 1975, Dick Crossley has been making beef jerky along the Oregon coast. And for just as long he's sold his jerky under the name "Tillamook Country Smoker." But now a battle is raging over the Tillamook name. The Tillamook County Creamery is trying to trademark the name and use it exclusively for their famous cheddar. It's part of a marketing strategy which hopes to make the cheddar into a national brand. Last year, Crossley received a "cease and desist" letter telling him to drop the name. He says...