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.
One region's flood, your feed bill
Storm damage to a major dairy region is already reshaping feed availability well beyond that region. What members outside the affected area should watch for.
Read postThe cheesemaker who timed her own batches
A small farmstead maker realized her make sheet had never been checked against a clock. What she found once she started timing herself changed how she schedules her…
Read postWhat the Sensory Evaluation Certificate actually trains
Our Sensory Evaluation Certificate gets mistaken for a tasting class. It's closer to a vocabulary and defect-detection course than a palate contest.
Read postA thin-margin quarter, and what it means for your books
Feed costs are still eating into the spread between milk price and production cost. A look at what the numbers mean for a small creamery's spring budgeting.
Read postA webinar worth planning your spring rennet order around
Our April webinar on rennet alternatives lands right when many members are placing spring supply orders. A look at why the timing isn't an accident.
Read postThe comment period small producers can't skip
A federal comment window on small-producer exemptions under the food safety modernization framework is open now. Here's what's at stake and how to weigh in.
Read postWhat a softer milk price means for your wheel
Federal forecasters see the 2023 all-milk price easing from last year's record. Here's what a softer Class III number does to a small maker's spring math.
Read postBuilding a shared tasting vocabulary
Two people on the same team often describe the same wheel in completely different words. A shared tasting vocabulary is a quality tool, not a luxury, and it's…
Read postThe apprentice entering her first competition
A second-year apprentice at a small farmstead creamery is entering the Washed Rind category for the first time this year, and second-guessing every wheel she's set aside for…
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