Blog
Certification, education, advocacy, events, industry news and the members behind them — written by the Federation, for the people who make, age, sell and buy the cheese.
The volunteer reading the farm bill
A committee mark-up this week put a new farm bill draft in front of Congress. One member spotlight on the unpaid volunteer who reads every dairy title so…
Read postThe silo testing shift
A shift from farm-level to plant-level surveillance testing has changed how some regions monitor milk supplies. We break down what's actually being asked of members and what isn't.
Read postThe tariff line that finally held still
After a year of shifting rates, the export tariff line most of our members watch has held steady for six straight weeks. What that stability is worth, and…
Read postThe paperwork that got easier this week
New federal guidance narrowed who has to keep the toughest traceability records, and carved cottage cheese out of the list entirely. Here's what it changes for the rest…
Read postMember spotlight: the clerk who just got her own login
A counter clerk who joined the federation only weeks ago told us what the first month of membership actually looks like from behind the case, not from the…
Read postWhat your cave needs before the flush
Spring flush milk is still weeks out, but the cave work that determines how it ages happens now. A February walkthrough of what to check before the volume…
Read postWhat the cheesemonger credential covers
Certified Cheesemonger gets asked about more than any credential except the foundations certificate. Here's what it actually tests, and who it's for.
Read postMember spotlight: the creamery she agreed to keep
When her father was ready to stop making cheese, she almost let the creamery close with him. A member spotlight on the succession conversations more farms are having…
Read postThe milk check that finally turned
January's all-milk price was the lowest reading in five years. By February it had turned. Here's what the rebound means for members who spent 2025 bracing, not budgeting.
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