New Cheese Introduced at Whole Foods

News EditorCheese, Media

Whole Foods Market is celebrating the 50th Anniversary of Rogue Creamery’s Oregon Blue Cheese by introducing a hand-selected special reserve edition of the raw milk cheese this month.

Rogue Creamery’s skilled cheese makers and apprentices hand make wheels of raw milk Oregon Blue the same way it was done 50 years ago. Wheels of Oregon Blue are quarter-turned daily and aged at least 90 days in Roquefort-modeled aging caves. Starting on the 75th day of its make anniversary, a wheel from each lot of Oregon Blue cheese is tasted, identified and scored by Rogue Creamery cheese makers and their team members twice per week until it is determined to be ready for Whole Foods Market. The Special Reserve Oregon Blue Cheese must meet nearly 30 criteria of rich blue flavor, creaminess, umami, tang, consistency and aesthetics for this 50th Anniversary label.

Because of the many seasonal and environmental variables in milk and the make and aging of this special cheese, Oregon Blue is aged to a multi-sensory experience including taste, aroma and aesthetic. Originally created a half century ago, Oregon Blue and Rogue Creamery have a long and robust history. The Creamery was founded in the 1930s by Tom Vella; he sought to expand into blue cheese in 1955 by traveling to the source of the world’s best blue cheeses: Roquefort, France. He toured farms, cheese factories, and curing caves. He returned to Oregon with plans for his own variety of blue cheese. Production began in 1957 and it became the first blue cheese produced in caves west of the Missouri River. Today, Rogue Creamery owners David Gremmels and Cary Bryant carry on the tradition of Rogue Creamery with Oregon Blue and other award-winning blue varieties including Crater Lake Blue, Oregonzola, Rogue River Blue and Smokey Blue.

Oregon Blue is the first raw milk cheese ever approved for export to the United Kingdom and France by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the U.S. Department of Agriculture; it will be available in Whole Foods Market’s UK stores in December 2007. This will be a historical moment for raw milk cheese made in America and supported by Whole Foods Market.

eDairy is Packed with Valuable Information

News EditorAgribusiness, Dairy Business, Industry News

Are you looking for a website that offers valuable dairy-industry insight, research, and government reports? Then eDairy is the site for you!

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NY Families Not Getting Enough Milk

News EditorDairy Checkoff, Health, Milk

In a recent study, 1,000 New York moms were asked about family’s habits. Out of that group, only 14% said they make it a rule to serve milk with meals. To help re-introduce milk to the family table, the American Dairy Association and Dairy Council in New York is conducting a contest for a New York family to win a year supply of free milk! Check out their website to learn more.

Cindy Schwartz and her son Ben pass up the milk section as they peruse the dairy aisle. “I’m not concerned about our lack of calcium at all because we get it from so many other sources. I’ve never been a milk drinker and my family seems to have followed suit.” Like the Schwartz family, Wendy Gamacag doesn’t usually serve milk to her family with dinner. “My son likes milk; my daughter does not like milk at the table. We typically do water.”

In a recent study, 1,000 New York moms were asked about family’s habits. Out of that group, only 14% said they make it a rule to serve milk with meals.

“That’s a pretty frightening statistic, “said Molly Morgan, a registered dietician and spokesperson for the New York State Dietetic Association. She said families need to think more about what their kids drink.

“The nutrient composition of milk, it’s the perfect package you can’t really find anywhere else. One glass of milk is going to provide you with a third of your daily calcium,” Morgan said.

Morgan said swapping a sugary drink for milk just once a day over the course of a month saves about four cups of sugar.

“There’s actually a lot of supported research that shows serving three servings of dairy foods a day does help to maintain a healthy weight and I do think that incorporating that and getting back to the basics of milk with meals can help with obesity issues in the country, “ Morgan said. And Morgan said while water is a great drink to have at meals, it still doesn’t provide the essential nutrients that milk has.

Iowa Co. First to Use PLA Bottle

News EditorAgribusiness, Equipment, Industry News, Milk

Naturally Iowa, Inc., a organic dairy processer in Iowa, has announced that they will be the first to manufacture polylactic acid (PLA) bottle preforms in the country.

The Company has reserved a dedicated factory space in Waverly, Nebraska and has ordered the necessary molds for the manufacturing and production of PLA bottle preforms. Preforms are the second stage in the production of a PLA bottle. Preforms are formed from the raw resin into a cylindrical tube through an injection molding machine. The preforms are then used with blow molding equipment to produce the final PLA bottle.

According to William Horner, President and CEO of Naturally Iowa Inc., the new equipment and facility gives Naturally Iowa complete control over the manufacturing and production process of the biodegradable PLA bottles. “This is one of many firsts for Naturally Iowa. After four years of research and development, Naturally Iowa became the first and only dairy in the world to integrate the blow molding of PLA preforms into our dairy production process. Now, Naturally Iowa will also control the manufacturing of PLA preforms for dairy containers, handling the entire process from resin to perform to bottle.”

Naturally Iowa distinguishes itself from other dairy processors and producers by offering the highest quality organic and all- natural dairy products packaged in an environmentally-friendly, sustainable container that completely biodegrades in 60 to 100 days in an industrial compost facility.

Soda Makers to Support Legislation

News EditorGovernment, Industry News

The main trade group representing Coca-Cola Co., PepsiCo Inc., and other beverage makers has agreed to support proposed legislation that would establish the first update to federal standards in about three decades on the sale of drinks and snacks in the nation’s schools. Under the proposed legislation, sales of sports drinks would be limited to athletic areas in high schools. Elsewhere in high schools, only bottled water, milk, juice or other drinks containing at most 25 calories for every eight ounces would be allowed. The soft-drink makers would have five years from the time the farm bill becomes law to make the changes.

A joint amendment to the Senate farm bill that Sen. Tom Harkin (D., Iowa), chairman of the Senate Agriculture Committee, and Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R., Alaska), plan to introduce in the coming days outlines nutrition standards for sales of beverages and snacks in vending machines, school stores and other venues.

The proposed legislation goes beyond voluntary guidelines that soda makers adopted in May 2006 under an agreement with an antichildhood-obesity alliance of the William J. Clinton Foundation and the American Heart Association to eliminate sales of sugared sodas to schools by the 2009-2010 school year. The industry’s voluntary guidelines allowed sports drinks to be sold throughout high schools, and capped calories on caloric beverages aside from milk and juice at 66 calories for every eight ounces.

Support for the amendment represents an about-face from years ago for the beverage industry, which fought state and federal legislation limiting school beverage sales. Now, industry representatives say they see federal legislation as helpful to enforce limits that they have for the most part already agreed to adopt. “We think this makes sense,” said a spokesman for the American Beverage Association, calling the proposed legislation “a more comprehensive approach.”

Rutter's Dairy to Protest

News EditorGovernment, Industry News, Milk

Rutter’s Dairy, based in York, Pa., will be meeting at the Pennsylvania state capitol tomorrow morning to protest a recent letter from Pa. Agricultural Secretary Dennis Wolff. The letter informed the dairy that they would have to stop using labels on their milk that could mis-lead consumers.

Rutter’s Dairy, sister company of the Rutter’s Farm Stores convenience store chain, wants to keep being able to use a “No Artificial Growth Hormones” label on milk sold by Rutter’s.

Rutter’s spokesman Neal Goulet said company officials will hand-deliver letters to members of the Pennsylvania General Assembly while at the capitol.

Goulet said the visit is part of a broader Rutter’s campaign to “communicate” its artificial growth hormones labeling position by running full-page newspaper ads, handling out more than 100,000 information cards at Rutter’s stores and by posting content on their website.

Rutter’s Farm Stores has 51 stores throughout central Pennsylvania. Rutter’s Holdings Inc. is the parent company of Rutter’s Dairy and Rutter’s Farm Stores.

The Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture announced on Oct. 24 that Rutter’s and 15 other dairy companies have until Jan. 1 to correct what the department said are “false or misleading” milk labels. The department said no scientific test exists that can determine the truth of a claim that a milk product doesn’t contain any synthetic hormones.

Rutter’s contends that the state had approved the “No Artificial Growth Hormones” label in August, only for the department to reverse itself with the ruling in October.

Dairy Markets Week in Review

Cindy ZimmermanDairyline, Markets

DairylineDairy Markets Week in Review
Holiday buying and continued export demand sent dairy prices higher this week, but the market is under pressure. Block cheese closed the week at $2.0550 per pound, up 4 1/2-cents on the week, and 65 1/2-cents above a year ago. Barrel started the week, dipping to $1.90, but rallied and closed Friday at $2.0025, up 9 cents on the week, and 60 1/4-cents above a year ago. Three cars of block traded hands on the week and 11 of barrel.

The NASS-surveyed U.S. average block price hit $1.8660, down 0.6 cent. Barrel averaged $1.9098, up 0.7 cent.

Butter closed Friday at $1.3850, up 7 cents on the week, and 5 1/2-cents above a year ago. Thirty four cars were sold. NASS butter averaged $1.2681, up 0.2 cent. NASS nonfat dry milk averaged 2.0660, up 2.2 cents, and dry whey averaged 42.12 cents, down 1.3 cents on the week.

The big news was nonfat dry milk. Cash Grade A powder plunged 11 cents October 25, then lost 7 cents Friday November 2, and both Grade A and Extra Grade dropped 8 cents Monday, dipping to $1.85.

Provided courtesy of Dairyline.

Brown Root Rot in Northeast States

News EditorFeed, Industry News, Research

The brown root rot, a fungus that attacks alfalfa has been detected in farm fields in New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania and Maine. The research was conducted by Cornell University scientists, with the first samplings conducted in 2005.

There are no effective treatments or controls for brown root rot, said Gary Bergstrom, a professor of plant pathology at Cornell. Last year, the Farm Bureau persuaded state lawmakers to spend $300,000 for research on the fungus, which can also infect vegetables and Christmas trees, he said.

Neither the Farm Bureau nor the state Agriculture and Markets Department have kept track of the number of infected acres in New York.

Brown root rot started out as a problem in Alaska and in the prairie provinces of western Canada — Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and the Yukon Territory. In eastern Canada, it has been reported only in Nova Scotia. The disease was first observed in the contiguous United States in 1996 in Wyoming and then in Idaho, Montana, Minnesota and Wisconsin. The fungus first appeared in New York in 2004 in Clinton County, Bergstrom said.

The disease’s lesions first appear as reddish-brown to dark brown areas of external discoloration, eventually progressing into the roots, said Michael Wunsch, a Cornell graduate student in plant pathology and the report’s lead author. The fungus prefers cooler soils, between 30 and 60 degrees. Infection and decay occur primarily in the late fall through early spring. Infected plants grow normally in the spring but die in mid-May to mid-June.

Bergstrom said the widespread detection of brown root rot in the testing indicates most fields already have the pathogen. He said the best thing farmers can do at this point is to buy stronger, disease-resistant alfalfa in the future.

NAIS Exemption Under Fire

News EditorAnimal Health, Government, Industry News

The Farm Bill debate continues in the Senate, and now government watchdog groups are questioning exempting National Animal Identification from the Freedom of Information Act (FIOA).

The Society of Professional Journalists, the American Civil Liberties Union and others say an attempt to ban the disclosure of information from a national animal tracking system could exempt some Agriculture Department documents from freedom of information laws.

Cattle groups say such disclosure could harm their business. The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, which represents ranchers, has lobbied on behalf of the plan. Colin Woodall, director of legislative affairs for the group, said much of the tracking information is sensitive and unrelated to food safety.

“If it gets in the wrong hands it could be very problematic for our members,” he said. “It’s like Coca Cola having to disclose its secret formula to everyone who wants to file a FOIA request,” he added, referring to the Freedom of Information Act.

The chairman of the Senate Agriculture Committee, Democratic Sen. Tom Harkin of Iowa, included the language in the bill and is now “further examining its implications,” committee spokeswoman Kate Cyrul. Cyrul said Thursday that the provision was included because ranchers were concerned that meatpackers, retailers or the government could misuse their information.

Ranchers now may choose to participate in the tracking program, which assigns numbers to individual animals or groups of animals. That way, the government could easily find animals related to those deemed to be infected with mad cow or other animal diseases. But many ranchers have declined to sign up, partly because of the disclosure concerns.

The Senate bill would allow the department to share some of the information with states and other government agencies under certain conditions, including threats of disease or threats to homeland security. But it would be against the law in most cases for the general public to access the information.

Vitamin D Could Reduce Aging

News EditorEducation, Research

A new study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition recently found that vitamin D, a key nutrient in milk, could have benefits linked to reduced inflammation and aging.

There is a new reason for the 76 million baby boomers in the United States to grab a glass of milk. Vitamin D, a key nutrient in milk, could have aging benefits linked to reduced inflammation, according to a new study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. In a genetic study of more than 2,100 female twin pairs ages 19-79, British and American researchers found that higher vitamin D levels were linked to improved genetic measures of lifelong aging and chronic stress. Using a genetic marker called leukocyte telomere length (LTL), they found those with the highest vitamin D levels had longer LTL, indicating lower levels of inflammation and body stress. The telomere difference between those with the highest and lowest vitamin D levels was equivalent to 5 years of aging.

Previous research has found that shortened LTL is linked to risk for heart disease and could be an indication of chronic inflammation – a key determinant in the biology of aging. While there are several lifestyle factors that affect telomere length (obesity, smoking and lack of physical activity), the researchers noted that boosting vitamin D levels is a simple change to affect this important marker. Studies continue to link vitamin D to an array of health benefits, securing vitamin D’s “super nutrient” status and providing even more reasons to get adequate amounts of this essential vitamin. Recent research suggests that beyond its well-established role in bone health, vitamin D also may help reduce the risk of certain cancers and autoimmune diseases, such as type 1 diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis and multiple sclerosis. Milk is excellent source of vitamin D and one of the few food sources of the nutrient. The recommended three servings of lowfat or fat-free milk provide 75% of the Daily Value or 300 IU of vitamin D.