FDA Bans Cheese - Really

Oh look, a sensationalist and completely inaccurate title on ATS. The drama will never stop and intellectual integrity is still missing.


All cheese won't be banned, artisan cheeses will not allowed to be cured on wooden boards.

And if you actually read the article, this mainly affects European imports.

For all those up in arms and screaming about government oversight, how many of you have ever actually bought an artisan cheese?

Mods should edit the title to prevent sensationalism to draw attention to the thread. It is completely inaccurate.

a reply to: nixie_nox

The FDA did back off on the regulation.

But the restricting of the use of wooden board in cheese making is in effect banning certain types of cheeses. Just like wine the fungus and bacteria on the grapes make the wine every region has different fungus and bacteria giving wine a unique flavor from where the grapes are grown.

Cheese has been made and cured for eons on wood . The flavor is derived by mold, bacteria or mites. And cant be duplicated without wood cheese bacteria mold or mite interaction. Many of these wood cured can be mimicked by using chemicals instead of natural methods . The one of the original curdling agent was animal based . Big factory corporation often use an acid instead. To offset lack of old methods extra salt is added plus other chemicals to mimic the real cheese flavor plus a lot of yellow dye to give the bright yellow cheese you have been conditioned to think is real cheese.

The American cheese society was worried enough to send this out if it was only imports that would be effected why would they do that?
www.cheesesociety.org...

I will quit being quiet when the government oversteps its bounds .

a reply to: Lostinthedarkness

I make cheese as a hobby. Wood planks are considered an important part when making specific types of cheeses, and they are always cleaned very well (or should be) in between makes. There are many cheeses which are not dependent on wood planks to maintain their original flavor, it is just a good way to age them.

Banning wood planks would not be the end of many cheeses, but honestly, if the cheesemaker is not keeping his wood shelves clean, would he keep stainless cleaner? Methinks not.

The title is misleading...

a reply to: Lostinthedarkness

Oh I agree it is silly. Actual artisan cheese making IS an art.

I was taking issue with a sensationalist title that: all cheese is banned. No, you can't make artisan cheeses on a wood board. It is very misleading. I am not a fan of the FDA by any means. I am glad they are relooking at it.

I can guarantee that half the members responding on this thread who are responding have never tried a good artisan cheese. They have no idea what is going on here. Also the majority affected are imports, not local. That actually makes me wonder.
I get tired of people posting bunk and everyone stops and jumps the gun without reading or judging where the source is from. People have actually freaked out on The Onion articles on here. They don't think.

Now that being said.

I used to assist in food inspections. You don't see many wooden chopping boards in restaurants because they do harbor bacteria.
Knowing how the government works regarding food inspections, they are probably protecting against those cheese producers who won't adequately disinfect the boards before using them.

Just like many, many restaurants fail inspections, food producers are the same. And the government doesn't want anyone dying a horrible and painful death as a result of some yahoo who didn't properly disinfect the boards.

a reply to: yeahright

I have seen that cheese. *shivers*

I would consider it if I was lost and starving in the woods for 3 weeks.

a reply to: bbracken677

Not to mean to go off topic but what kind of cheese do you make? It is such hard work. More power to you.


With some cheeses I imagine the board is just as important as the barrel that some wines are aged in.

a reply to: nixie_nox

I have made cheddars (this has been my main focus), camembert, colby, gouda, cottage (easily made), cream cheese, attempt at butterkase (unsuccessful), cheshire, blue cheese (one success, 3 fails lol), lancashire, gloucester, feta, and parmesan.

Several of the above are variants of cheddar. It's quite an interesting process.

Differences of bacteria, fat content of the milk, temperatures during the process, moisture levels, how the curds are handled, timing at each stage, how it is aged and a host of other items determine the type of cheese.

Just to get from beginning of the process to the drying stage is pretty much an all day process. After that there is not a lot of hands on...mainly just flipping the cheeses periodically and maintaining the right humidity and temp during aging.

originally posted by: lynxpilot
Cheese doesn't have to be involved in interstate commerce, therefore it can still be made on boards and consumed or sold within a single state and fed has no part in it. No doubt the fed would challenge that, but it's the supreme law of the land.

Tell that to the people who go down the road to their neighbor to buy his raw milk ... not interstate commerce, right?

You'd be wrong. The SCOTUS ruled way back in 1930 it could be regulated as interstate commerce because it could find its way across state lines and therefore become interstate commerce. You can thank the FDR Court for that one.

a reply to: bbracken677

Me and my better half have milk goats . We make goat cheese with the extra milk . It is tricky getting a hard cheddar type from goat milk. But the softer ones are really good. Fresh squeezed milk to start with it really feels good to know where your food comes from. I made a homemade cheese press with a large c clamp and wooden disks with 4,6,or 8" rings of pvc for the forms. We are novice at it had some great successes and some failures. The attempt at blue cheese was the biggest failure.

Homemade cheese is much better than the mass produced stuff.

a reply to: ketsuko

Also a different approach courts have taken is the sale in an intrastate area can effect interstate commerce by reducing the importation of a product . to me it means big corp not getting all the profit have to stop that . Seems that was from the California whole foods raid .

a reply to: nixie_nox

I command all governments to stay the hell out of our food and to stop poisoning or altering it PERIOD.

This isn't a request, its an order.

a reply to: Unity_99

a reply to: yeahright
You are talking about local health departments.

This is the federal govt who can screw up an education quicker than you can say "splat".

Access to raw milk is an issue that is near and dear to many hearts. Unfortunately there is nothing consistent across the US regarding this and fear of raw milk is fomented by the big milk producers as well as our federal govt.

Raw milk has real and substantial health benefits. By the time it is pasteurized some of those benefits are gone. If it is ultra-pasteurized as most of the so-called "organic milk" is there is virtually nothing left of real milk, including most of the health benefits.

Leave raw milk out and it turns to cheese. Leave pasteurized milk out and it sours. Leave ultra-pasteurized milk out and you have a putrid mess that makes bad pasteurized milk smell sweet.

Raw milk contains many components that kill pathogens and strengthen the immune system. These include lacto-peroxidase, lacto-ferrin, anti-microbial components of blood (leukocytes, B-macrophages, neutrophils, T-lymphocytes, immunoglobulins and antibodies), special carbohydrates (polysaccharides and oligosaccharides), special fats (medium chain fatty acids, phospholipids and spingolipids), complement enzymes, lysozyme, hormones, growth factors, mucins, fibronectin, glycomacropeptide, beneficial bacteria, bifidus factor and B12-binding protein. These components are largely inactivated by the heat of pasteurization and ultrapasteurization. For further information, see Part I of our Campaign for Real Milk PowerPoint Presentation.

This five-fold protective system destroys pathogens in the milk, stimulates the Immune system, builds healthy gut wall, prevents absorption of pathogens and toxins in the gut and ensures assimilation of all the nutrients.

There are many health benefits to consuming raw milk. Early studies showed that children consuming raw milk had greater resistance to disease, better growth and stronger teeth than children consuming pasteurized milk. Animal studies indicate that raw milk confers better bone structure, better organ development, better nutrient assimilation, better fertility and even better behavior than pasteurized milk.

So..we have yet another case of someone in the federal govt losing their mind in a freak out.

originally posted by: Unity_99
a reply to: nixie_nox

I command all governments to stay the hell out of our food and to stop poisoning or altering it PERIOD.

This isn't a request, its an order.

They are listening to you and have taken note of your order. They will send it up the chain of command and expect a change within 24 hours. My superiors have confirmed this. You have been heard and understood. They don't believe you are playing around and are taking this serious. They want to know if you are employed, they beleive you are some kind of genius and would like to hire you. They can't believe they didn't think of this before.

originally posted by: Lostinthedarkness
a reply to: ketsuko

Also a different approach courts have taken is the sale in an intrastate area can effect interstate commerce by reducing the importation of a product . to me it means big corp not getting all the profit have to stop that . Seems that was from the California whole foods raid .

My husband pointed this one out after I'd posted. He added, "This is why justices are not economists and should not pretend to be."

If mods read a thread that has been called out, should they not do some basic fact checking so the thread can be delt with instead of perpetuating the ignorance?

June 11, 2014

Recently, you may have heard some concerns suggesting the FDA has taken steps to end the long-standing practice in the cheesemaking industry of using wooden boards to age cheese. To be clear, we have not and are not prohibiting or banning the long-standing practice of using wood shelving in artisanal cheese. Nor does the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) require any such action. Reports to the contrary are not accurate.

The agency’s regulations do not specifically address the use of shelving made of wood in cheesemaking, nor is there any FSMA requirement in effect that addresses this issue. Moreover, the FDA has not taken any enforcement action based solely on the use of wooden shelves.

www.fda.gov...

As I have read through most of this thread a few thoughts come to mind. I understand the FDA has now gone on record to clarify it's "intent" and clearly cheese is not "banned"......but did this whole "misunderstanding" hurt peoples confidence in consuming traditional, old school , natural cheese ?!

For myself and it appears many of other members...NO it did not !! It has been my experience that GOOD cheese is something people are willing to pay for.....and I have to wonder why such a nutritious, yummy, delightful part of our diet for 1000's of years is now called into question?!

Will kids someday believe that if a piece of cheese that isn't wrapped in plastic it's unsafe!? Will their little pallets be so desensitized they can't taste the difference between a processed piece of cheese and the REAL thing!!!!

a reply to: MountainLaurel

I would say yeah..

Look at milk. It is pasteurized or ultra-pasteurized which removes much of what makes milk such a good food.

Why is there such a paranoia regarding raw milk? Because of milking conditions back in the late 19th century and early 20th century. We are blackmailed by 100 year old perceptions. Milking equipment 100 years ago was not made of stainless. Dairies were not subject to the inspections and cleanliness standards they are today.

These days big MILK supports the laws since they can produce substandard milk which could not be sold raw and through the pasteurizing process "save" this milk and sell it.

Raw milk is healthier than processed milk not just by a little, but by a country mile (pun intended). Listeria is the whipping boy, and yet most often listeria is not present at the milking, but rather persists in the processes after milking. Listeria can exist in milk, cheese products and even non-dairy products. The chances of listeria showing up in a processed food is much higher than it would in a non-processed food.

But!!! We must prevent Listeria!! Ban raw milk?? Yeah! Hang the witches and burn the warlocks too!!.

Sheesh