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.
What a bigger milk number means for your case
National milk production is running well ahead of last year, and the federal forecast just moved again. Here's what a bigger supply number means for a small maker's…
Read postThe HACCP credential behind your license
The Food Safety & HACCP Certificate isn't a badge for the wall — for many makers it's the paperwork a state license or a wholesale buyer actually asks…
Read postThe humidity swing your swab plan should catch
Furnaces and low outdoor humidity change what's happening in your aging room even when nothing else has changed. Here's how to fold that into a winter swab schedule.
Read postThe recordkeeping deadline that moved again
The federal traceability recordkeeping deadline our smaller members were bracing for has moved again, this time to mid-2028. Here's why we're using the extra runway now, not later.
Read postMember spotlight: the cave she inherited
Renata Castillo took over her father's aging room last spring instead of watching it get sold off with the rest of the farm. A year later, she told…
Read postThe feed line that finally eased
Corn and soybean meal are trading below their long-run averages heading into 2026. For farmstead producers who spent last year cutting everywhere else, that's the first real relief…
Read postMember spotlight: the make that doesn't take a holiday
A farmstead cheesemaker in the northern Plains told us why December 31 looks like any other make day, and what an arctic cold snap has meant for keeping…
Read postA workshop on wrapping, not just making
Our January workshop in Courtenay covers the cedar-strap wrapping technique behind some of the softest washed-rind wheels in the case. Here's what it covers and who it's for.
Read postThe safety net gets a rewrite for 2026
The federal dairy margin program many members lean on has changed for 2026, with a longer lock-in option and lower premiums. Here's what to check before you sign…
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