Small cheese makers are outraged over a new agency order from Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that has hit the industry like a thunderbolt. Monica Metz, Branch Chief of the FDA’s Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition’s Dairy and Egg Branch, issued an order that appears to end the centuries old practice of aging cheese on wooden boards. Banning the use of wood would threaten the American artisan cheese industry and could even bar some of the most prized imported cheeses. Worse yet, small cheese makers say that the new rule favors large manufacturers like Leprino and Kraft and Metz happens to be a former Leprino employee. [Update: The FDA appears to be backing off Metz’s statement and now denies that there is a new policy.]
The whey hit the fan after the New York State Department of Agriculture asked the FDA for clarification as to whether wooden surfaces were acceptable for the aging of cheese. Metz then responded with the following:
“The use of wooden shelves, rough or otherwise, for cheese ripening does not conform to cGMP requirements, which require that “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.” 21 CFR 110.40(a). Wooden shelves or boards cannot be adequately cleaned and sanitized. The porous structure of wood enables it to absorb and retain bacteria, therefore bacteria generally colonize not only the surface but also the inside layers of wood. The shelves or boards used for aging make direct contact with finished products; hence they could be a potential source of pathogenic microorganisms in the finished products.”
That one line effectively ended centuries of cheese making without any vote of Congress or a hearing or a scientific study. One administrator appears to have rendered a decision that would decapitate an industry. I recently wrote about the rise of a “fourth branch” within our system and the dangers that it poses for a tripartite system. There has been a gravitational shift in our system toward this fourth branch which now has a surprisingly degree of executive, legislative, and judicial powers. This issue is also raised in the recess appointment context and the diminishing control of Congress over agency actions. I have previously testified and written about President Barack Obama’s use of recess appointments, which I viewed as flagrantly unconstitutional. Recently, the D.C. Circuit agreed with that view and found that the Obama Administration had violated the recess appointment powers. Then a second appellate court has joined that view, the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. I have two law review articles that discuss the abuse of recess appointment powers in modern presidencies within the context of this changing federal system. See Jonathan Turley, Recess Appointments in the Age of Regulation, 93 Boston University Law Review (2013) and Jonathan Turley, Constitutional Adverse Possession: Recess Appointments and the Role of Historical Practice in Constitutional Interpretation, 2103 Wisconsin Law Review (2013). We are currently awaiting a ruling in Noel Canning v. NLRB, No. 12-1115 (D.C. Cir. 2013).
Metz cites 21 CFR 110.40(a). However that provision does not mention wood shelves or equipment:
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 design, construction, and use of equipment and utensils shall preclude the adulteration of food with lubricants, fuel, metal fragments, contaminated water, or any other contaminants. All equipment should be so installed and maintained as to facilitate the cleaning of the equipment and of all adjacent spaces. Food-contact surfaces shall be corrosion-resistant when in contact with food. They shall be made of nontoxic materials and designed to withstand the environment of their intended use and the action of food, and, if applicable, cleaning compounds and sanitizing agents. Food-contact surfaces shall be maintained to protect food from being contaminated by any source, including unlawful indirect food additives.
Cheese makers have been cleaning and maintaining safe conditions for centuries with wood. Moreover, many artisan cheese makers strongly believe that wood is a critical element in the taste and maturation of cheese. Rob Ralyea of Cornell University’s Department of Food Science, commenting on the FDA’s action noted “the great majority of cheeses imported to this country are in fact aged on wooden boards and some are required to be aged on wood by their standard of identity (Comte, Beaufort and Reblochon, to name a few). Therefore, it will be interesting to see how these specific cheeses will be dealt with when it comes to importation into the United States.”
I fail to see how such a decision can be made unilaterally by this official or her department without more support. Under the same logic, the FDA could ban oak barrels for wine and insist on stainless steel or ban the traditional drying techniques of peat used in Scotch (often on the floor of a barn).
I am a great lover of artisan cheese and, once you have been to Europe, most store bought cheese from companies like Kraft seem rather pathetic like jug wine. Our artisan cheeses are just now coming into international acclaim and recognition. In this sense, cheese is where American wines were a few decades ago. Just as we are emerging as a major supplier of artisan, high-value cheeses, the Obama Administration appears poised to cut off these small makers at the knees.
Update: The Administration is backpedaling on Metz’s statement but not entirely. It released a statement that “The FDA will engage with the artisanal cheese-making community to determine whether certain types of cheeses can safely be made by aging them on wooden shelving.” That still leaves some worried about new regulations forcing metal production areas like Kraft. The change also raises the question of why the Administration would release the policy stated by Metz and cause such a worldwide industry panic.
Source: Forbes
J Brian Harris, I’ve eaten 10 year old cheddar, what a great bite to it!
Jim,
People got sick from cider that’s why you can’t sell it!
Just like people get sick from eating raw oysters, that’s why people can’t serv……..
errr, ummm, that’s not working. I’ll be back.
“Suppose there are two Doctors in your town. The first has been in practice for 2 decades and has a great reputation, but doesn’t have a license to practice medicine. The second doctor has a few years of experience and treats patients terribly but has a license. Who would you go to?”
Funny you brought this up. The best docs are well trained, intuitive and have experience. Where a physician gets their degree or who “accredits them” speaks to their level of debt, not their ability as a practitioner of medicine.
(I wonder where Dr. Vincent A. DeGennaro, the Chief of Staff for the VA Medical Center in Miami was trained. We know his license to practice medicine was revoked by the State of New York in 2008! Good to see .gov is “looking out for us,” especially our veterans!)
jim, I am w/ you 100% dude. I used to caddy @ a country club in Ct. After carrying 2 bags for 18 holes I would walk a half mile to Minor’s Orchard and draw cold cider out of a barrel. Jim, I can still smell and taste it. It was help yourself, put money in the box.
Nick,
The stupid thing is, is at our fall festival, I can’t sell cider that is made right in front of the eyes of the cutomer, but pies and cookies from someones kitchen where only God knows how clean things are, no problem. Not that I’m asking for more regulation but it just doesn’t make common sense.
To me, as a biologist/bioengineer/licensed-Wisconsin-Professional-Engineer, the proposed regulation, which wood [pun very intentional – jbh] effectively destroy the making of many forms of cheese as a way of preserving the nutritional value of milk, points to something approaching absolute, infinite ignorance of the most basic ideas in scientific biology.
I have long observed people making decisions about biological phenomena whose basis for making decisions is from sadly profound, to atrociously profound ignorance of biology.
Fermentation is an essential process in the phenomenon of life on earth.
For an example, I find mention in the biology literature of the flora and fauna of a typical human person’s gut commonly producing, through fermentation, something in the range of 3 ounces of of ethyl alcohol a day, equivalent to about 8 12-ounce cans of beer a day. Some people who never drank alcoholic beverages may sometimes develop Gut Fermentation Syndrome (also called, Auto-Brewery Syndrome), and end up legally intoxicated without ever drinking alcoholic beverages.
Anyone ever make delicious Wisconsin 14 year Cheddar Cheese without using “cheese starter” (germs, that is)? Methinks, never. There is a family-operated cheese factory a reasonable bicycle ride, for me, from where I live, that sometimes has 14 year Cheddar. The most recent package I acquired went for $39.95 per pound.
Hundreds of years of safe and nutritious cheese-making and some apparent biological ignoramus believes that his abysmal ignorance is superior to hundreds of years of safe , traditional cheese-making practice?
Is the human species the first biological species to ever exist which has far more than immensely infinite capability for unrelenting stupidity?
Am I, and is my life, an example of such stupidity? In more than 75 years since I was born, I have never been able to truthfully, honestly observe so much as one actually-avoidable event of any kind whatsoever. I have never been able to observe so much as one actually-avoidable: 1. criminal act. 2. accident. 3. birth. 4. death 5. war. 6. deserved punishment. 7. act of violence. 8. unforgivable incident.
Holding people who cannot understand the law accountable to it is an accidental crime against life. It remains an unavoidable accident and an unavoidable crime because humans as a species (homo sapiens sapiens?) have not evolved sufficiently, either biologically or socially, enough to understand how neural networks, such as a human nervous system, actually function when making decisions?
Jim, A lot of small farms in Wi. give their middle finger to the govt. and make cider the way it’s supposed to be made. Same w/ raw milk. People are fed up w/ govt. regulations. Those who love big govt. stay away from threads like this like the plague, well most of them do.
Thanks, Darren.
Steve,
Amen brother! I think to your point to, Stossel had a program once that went over things like the FDA. He asked the question, “So why does an FDA label on a container of food make you feel better?” It shouldn’t.
Suppose there are two Doctors in your town. The first has been in practice for 2 decades and has a great reputation, but doesn’t have a license to practice medicine. The second doctor has a few years of experience and treats patients terribly but has a license. Who would you go to?
This reminds me of what the govt. did to the cider industry. You are no longer allowed to make and sell cider without expensive unnecessary flash pasteurization equipment. I have an old cider press that for years growing up we would bring to our church fall fair and make and sell on site fresh cider. The dual process of washing and visual inspection was more than good enough to have never made anyone sick. But you can’t do this anymore. I’ve thought about trying to go around the stupid regulation by not selling cider but instead, “renting” the press for 10 minute intervals for about the price of a gallon of cider. What the renter does with the press is not up to me.
Anyway, all this regulation did was hurt the small cider makers in the state. It also reminds me of a govt. that thinks it knows the ranching business better than the ranchers. Any group ending with agency or administration, should be removed.
Saucy,
The FDA’s regulation should and does cover pharmaceuticals. Nothing is ever going to completely safe, even branded drugs. As a consumer, check where it’s made, see if there are any safety issues. (You should be doing this anyway before taking any meds to know side effects, etc.)
As for Walmart jewelry, not relevant. FDA doesn’t regulate jewelry. Yet.
Toxic dog treats, not sure if the FDA regulates that, wouldn’t surprise me. Shame on the owners for giving their dogs petrified mystery meat from China.
You ask; “Do you assume that people who would poison locals would hesitate to poison foreigners?”
Nope.
Do you assume you are not responsible for your own well being? Do you need yet another government agency expanding its powers to “keep you safe?”
I don’t subscribe to the Chris Rock school of thought. Specifically, “The President of the United States is our boss, but he is also… you know, the President and the First Lady are kinda like the Mom and the Dad of the country”.
The government is not my parent, boss, nanny or caretaker. Sadly, it is for a lot of people.
We are a weak, ignorant lot that becomes more and more dependent on our government’s concern and protection. They’re banking on it.
“I predict future happiness for Americans if they can prevent the government from wasting the labors of the people under the pretense of taking care of them.” Thomas Jefferson
Gigi, I’ve made soft cheese out of home made yogurt, it’s absolutely delicious!
Anyone who has eaten artisan cheese compared to commercially made cheese can recognize the difference in quality and taste. There are a lot of things the FDA has to do that they completely ignore–including getting the chemicals, artificial flavors and unnatural preservatives out of our foods. I believe that these unnatural ingredients are causing some diseases and some obesity in our country.
Help please. I had a comment eaten and it was not FDA approved. Thanks.
The 2 governors of Ca. and NYC made a bet on the Stanley Cup. Cuomo bet a gift basket of ethnic food from NYC. He’s a liberal weenie but he’s also Italian, so he know real food. Gov. Moonbeam bet a box of Ca. organic brown rice cakes. I would tell him to shove his rice cakes up his crazy ass and put up something of value. Chrissake, Ca. wine, fruit, seafood. No wonder Ca. is going to hell in a hand basket. ORGANIC BROWN RICE CAKES. What an fool!
Nick, I restored your comment at 3:44.
The 2 governors of Ca. and NYC made a bet on the Stanley Cup. Cuomo bet a gift basket of ethnic food from NYC. He’s a liberal weenie but he’s also Italian, so he know real food. Gov. Moonbeam bet a box of Ca. organic brown rice cakes. I would tell him to shove his rice cakes up his crazy ass and put up something of value. Chrissake, Ca. wine, fruit, seafood. No wonder Ca. is going to hell in a hand basket. ORGANIC BROWN RICE CAKES. What an idiot!
Nick, I retrieved your comment on 6/12 at 3:43 PM
i would not trust the FDA to cut the cheese let alone decide how to make the cheese.
Drinking and commenting into the wee hours of the morning is the new form of “dialing while drunk.” My mom had 2 alcoholic siblings who would get hammered and call her in the middle of the night. That scares the hell outta you. I guess the commenting while drunk really only hurts the commenter. The crazy, drunken comments there for all to see. A sorta “walk of shame.”
Reminded me of this:
Steve Kellam wrote “Chinese milk, oil and water are issues for the Chinese to address and have nothing to do with the issues being discussed.”
Surely you jest.
Are you aware that 80% of drug components come from China and India? Have you looked at your generic OTC drugs recently to see where they are made (hint: not North America or Europe)? If a drug is made in India, do you realize that the maker has no qualms about using Chinese ingredients? Search on “Fortune Raxbaxy fraud” for more information on an Indian company with no scruples.
Are you aware that Walmart is responsible for 10% of all Chinese imports? Do you remember when Walmart got caught importing jewelry made with cadmium?
Search on “toxic dog and cat treats” to refresh your memory of when at least 1000 dogs and cats died before the Chinese-made treats were pulled from the shelves. And remember that many people would not associate the treats with their pet becoming sick or dying, so the actual number is much, much higher.
Food and drug products made in China are made with local water.
Do you assume that people who would poison locals would hesitate to poison foreigners?
Nick Spinelli wrote “I am a reasonable libertarian”
That word “reasonable” carries more baggage than Paris Hilton on a European shopping expedition.
“We need an FDA, but it is a wholly owned subsidiary of Big Pharma”
The problem of regulatory capture is endemic throughout the government. Most laws today are written by lobbyists.
“The govt. needs to be cut in half”
We need to decide which functions of the government are necessary and eliminate the rest. If that results in half the size, fine, but using a Walmart shopping technique is not the solution.
But that is politically impossible. Democrats want to have large social welfare, while Republicans want to have large corporate welfare, yet both pretend to care about the debt.
SecDef recently announced that the subsidy for military commissaries will be slashed (i.e. he is reducing military pay), yet the new LRS-B bomber program is going full speed, with the *starting* price being $550 million per aircraft.
“the new LRS-B bomber program is going full speed, with the *starting* price being $550 million per aircraft.”
The good news is that at that price they will be too expensive to commit to combat.