Small cheese-makers can deliver some of the choicest morsels to complement a glass of red wine or to add just the right note to a turkey sandwich, from gourmet Gouda to fresh asiago.
But as The Washington Post reports, the increasingly popular artisanal manufacturers have not only captivated taste buds, but have also caught the eye of federal regulators. Authorities are worried about potentially unhealthy practices at these small-scale operations, which often are housed on family farms and use raw, rather than pasteurized, milk.
“We don’t expect the small artisan cheese manufacturer to look like a Kraft facility,” said Donald Kraemer, deputy director of the Food and Drug Administration’s Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition. “But the fundamental things which make food safe must be in place.”
Officials say that the increased attention responds to an ongoing public health risk. Tainted cheese has sickened some 400 people in the past five years, which has led to 87 documented hospitalizations, as well as two miscarriages and one stillbirth.
As a result, since last April, cheese manufacturers have been under increasing scrutiny by federal regulators worried about E. Coli and salmonella contamination. The agency has also initiated a review of its rules regulating cheese production.
Much of the difference between the small-time producers and the major dairy corporations lies in the production of soft cheeses, for which artisanal producers use unheated raw milk. Under a 1949 regulation, cheese made from raw milk must be aged for 60 days, which was judged to be sufficient time to kill off dangerous bacteria that could linger inside the product. Yet recent research, the Post pointed out, has demonstrated that some bacteria can survive longer than that, which has led to speculation that stricter rules are needed.
Artisanal cheese-makers argue that federal regulators simply do not appreciate what it takes to make a delicious specialty cheese and that authorities are trying to impose standards suited for industrial food companies.
Not all raw milk cheese is “artisanal.” There is basic raw-milk cheddar, which I get from the Amish market at a reasonable price. Also some of these cheeses undergo some kind of heat treatment–enough to kill some bacteria, but not necessarily the temperature and duration combination that would qualify as pasteurization. Some consumers believe there is a truth-in-labeling issue with heat-treated cheese, and any such cheese heated above 105 degrees F should not be allowed to be called a raw-milk cheese.