Posts

Barnes, R. (2011). Supreme Court blocks massive sex-discrimination suit against Wal-Mart. The Washington Post. Retrieved from https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/supreme-court-blocks-massive-sex-discrimination-suit-against-wal-mart/2011/06/20/AGCQ81cH_story.html?hpid=z1

Callari, J. (2015). PE film market analysis: Cheese packaging : Plastics technology. Plastics Technology. Retrieved from http://www.ptonline.com/blog/post/pe-film-market-analysis-cheese-packaging

DeWeerdt, S. (2009). Is local food better? Worldwatch Institute. Retrieved from http://www.worldwatch.org/node/6064

Fankhauser, D. (2009). Rennet for making cheese. University of Cincinnati Clermont College. Retrieved from http://biology.clc.uc.edu/fankhauser/cheese/rennet/rennet.html

Fletcher, J. (2005). French cheeses fall victim to import rules. SunSentinel. Retrieved from http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/2005-05-26/features/0505240170_1_goat-cheeses-washed-rind-semisoft-cheeses

Food Processing Center. (2001). The specialty cheese market. The University of Nebraska – Lincoln. Retrieved from http://digitalcommons.unl.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1008&context=fpcreports

Fromages. (2015). Brie. Fromages. Retrieved from http://www.fromages.com/en/fromage/68-brie

Fulton, A. (2014). Unlocking France’s secrets to safer raw milk cheese. NPR. Retrieved from http://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2014/08/12/339858426/unlocking-frances-secrets-to-safer-raw-milk-cheese

GMO Database. (2010). Chymosin. GMO Compass. Retrieved from http://www.gmo-compass.org/eng/database/enzymes/83.chymosin.html

Ross, P. (2013). Cow farts have ‘larger greenhouse gas impact’ than previously thought; methane pushes climate change. International Business Times. Retrieved from http://www.ibtimes.com/cow-farts-have-larger-greenhouse-gas-impact-previously-thought-methane-pushes-climate-change-1487502

Simon, X., & Duquenne, P. (2014). Assessment of workers’ exposure to bioaerosols in a French cheese factory. The Annals of Occupational Hygiene. Retrieved from http://annhyg.oxfordjournals.org/content/58/6/677.abstract

According to a 2001 study by Dairy Foods, Brie cheese was the sixth fastest growing natural cheese in retail supermarkets. However, Brie was one of the three top grossing cheeses during the same time. In supermarkets, brie is packaged in a wooden box of either a one or two kilogram wheel (University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2001).

The food supermarkets in the United States that offer brie cheese, and sit at the end of the commodity chain, have been at the forefront of public shaming for years. This has to do with several factors, however the one that trumps all others is sex-discrimination in terms of wages and promotion opportunities. As the United States becomes a more progressive country and groups across it fight for equality, there are still tons of instances where sex discrimination happens in the work places and one of the most notable ones is with Wal-Mart. Wal-Mart is notorious for having poor customer service and treating its employees poorly undoubtedly leads to that. Just a couple of years ago a huge sex-discrimination lawsuit was filed against Wal-Mart that was heard at the Supreme Court. The purpose of this case was to determine if a class action lawsuit by over 1.5 million female employees could be filed against the company. This was on the basis of sex-discrimination on wages and promotion opportunities. Unfortunately, the case was denied by the Supreme Court, even though substantial evidence was provide that women held 70% of the hourly jobs at Wal-Mart and only 33% of the management positions and that female employees were paid substantially less than their male counterparts that worked in the same roles. However, it did leave room for smaller lawsuits against the company to take place. While this wasn’t a victory against the supermarket giant, it acted as a notice that Wal-Mart needs to get their business in order or else the smaller suits will come and come in bunches (Barnes, 2011).

There have been many issues with French cheese coming into the United States because of France’s affinity for using raw milk. The FDA of the United States has standards necessary for soft-ripened cheeses, like Brie cheese, and semi-soft cheeses. “Both definitions permit the use of raw milk if the cheese meets the 60-day aging requirement” (Fletcher, 2005). However, according to Cathy Goldsmith of the Berkeley Cheese Board Collective, since this requirement has put into place, French cheese sales in the United States have dropped due to the difference in taste after the longer aging process. Customers have now been relying more on brie cheese produced inside the United States rather than older aged cheese from France (Fletcher, 2005).

The greenhouse gas emissions issue surrounding the dairy industry is an important issue that is currently being studied in the United States. While the United States sits on the other end of the exportation process, importation, they are an unavoidable part of the process. These studies have produced conclusions surrounding the debate between importing, eating locally-grown, and a dietary shift. The results have proven that “replacing red meat and dairy with chicken, fish, or eggs for one day per week would save the equivalent or driving 760 miles per year” (DeWeerdt, 2009). They have come to the conclusion that a dietary shift can be more helpful at “lowering an average household’s food-related footprint than ‘buying local’” (DeWeerdt, 2009). So while the emissions produced in the manufacturing of dairy are higher than other products and the travel that ensues during the exportation/importation of these products is harmful, replacing them from your diet once a week with food that produces less emissions is better environmentally than buying local (DeWeerdt, 2009).

Brie cheese is typically aged for a minimum of 8 weeks but can be extended slightly when coming to the United States (Fromage, 2015). This is because the “U.S. Food and Drug Administration requires all cheese sold into interstate commerce to be made from pasteurized milk or to be aged for 60 days if made from raw milk” (Fulton, 2014).

The packaging of cheese during the storage and aging phase of production is of the utmost importance. This is because different films protect the cheese better than others. According to a plastic film market analysis done on cheese by Mastio & Company, the cheese film market is growing at a considerable rate. For that reason, competitors don’t want to get left behind and fall out of this rich market entirely. In order to ensure their place, companies have begun using polyethylene films instead of the polyvinylidene chloride films that were previously used for natural cheeses, like brie, that need to continue to age during storage. The Mastio study points out, “PVDC films have higher hot fill capabilities than PE films and provide good gas barriers. However…PVDC resins are often more costly than PE resins” (Callari, 2015). This means that the PVDC films work better in storage because they control the release of gases better than the PE films. This is of extreme importance in the storage phase because the cheese has to age for at least 60 days before the next phase, and if the cheese ages too quickly on the shelf it may not be able to be sold. However, the market has shown that companies put a higher priority on making the most profit possible and challenging competition because as of “2014, there was no reported usage of this (PVDC) material” (Callari, 2015).

In order to transform cheese curds into the delicious, smooth and complex finished product, the curds must be exposed to a selection of bacteria to produce the unique and rich flavors. The most common bacteria used in the creation of brie cheese are Penicillium candidum, Penicillium camemberti or Brevibacterium linens. While these organisms can be beneficial in producing delicate and complex flavors, they can be harmful for the cheese makers who are regularly exposed to them.

A recent study of French cheese factory occupational hygiene examined the dangers cheese makers, specifically cheese washers face when exposed to toxic fungal bioaerosols, which are airborne bacteria or microbial endotoxins. The study found significant quantities of fungi, culturable bacteria, and endotoxins present in the work atmosphere. In fact, the exposure levels suggested that cheese brushers, cheese washers, and packagers were exposed to the toxic bioaerosols at a potentially harmful level that could lead to immunological risks and allergenic dangers (Simon, X & Duquenne, P, 2014).

Rennin, or chymosin, is the active protease in rennet. Rennin splits the milk protein at a specific point, affecting the clotting. After splitting, the casein clumps together and separates from the whey, forming curds. Rennin is naturally found in the calf stomachs, where they use the enzyme to prolong the digestion of milk. In fact, it is believed that cheese was first discovered by accident when milk was kept in a bag made of the stomach of a calf or goat. However, now the more common practice is to either extract the rennin from the frozen stomach of a calf and incubate it before adding it to a vat of milk or by extracting rennin from thistles or cynara can also be used (Frankhauser, 2009).

However, there are environmental issues surrounding the production of rennet. For thousands of years, cheese makers have relied on traditional rennet sources. Over the last few decades the demand for cheese has increased at such an unprecedented rate, that supplies of rennin simply cannot keep up. Since the 1990s, cheese makers have begun using genetically modified rennin as an alternative to natural renin. There are many controversies that come with the use of GMOs and cheese makers are divided in this regard. France is one of only two countries that outlaw the use of genetically modified rennin, and due to not technically being an ingredient, is often not required to be listed as a GMO on the labels. Unlike the cheese makers in most countries, the French believe that natural renin is both better for the environment, but also provides better taste and more complex flavors (Chymosin, 2010).

In the United States, it is illegal to sell raw milk (unpasteurized) cheese unless it has been aged for at least 60 days. Fortunately, the aging process for Brie meets that criteria, so raw milk Brie is available for sale. The French have a view of raw milk that dramatically contrasts with the US. For example, the US is adamantly pro-pasteurization, a process that kills all of the bacteria. In contrast, many prominent French cheese makers believe that while this kills harmful bacteria like listeria and e. coli, it also kills the good bacteria that contribute to a more complex flavor. The French method of cheese making, which instead focuses on killing the harmful bacteria while preserving the flavorful bacteria is based on the French government’s guide to cheese microbiology, a work not yet translated to English, and the research of many prominent French scientists. Although, the French regularly consume raw milk cheese without adverse effects, it is only legal to sell in the US after it has been aged for at least 60 days (Fulton, 2014).

However, whether the milk for the cheese is raw or pasteurized, it still comes from dairy cows. Unfortunately, dairy cows can contribute to global warming. According to the EPA, globally, livestock are the “largest source of methane from human-related activities.” In fact, a single cow up to 500L of methane a day. About six percent of their ingested energy is released as methane, a number significantly higher than any previous estimates. About two percent of the global greenhouse gasses produced are methane. However, this problem can be addressed by changing the livestock diet. Concentrate feed rather than silage helps reduce the amount of methane produced by cows (Ross, 2013).

Brie cheese is both my and Mike’s favorite cheese. Brie is soft and easy to slice, making it the ideal option for a delicious treat of cheese and crackers and an excellent staple for cheese platters and samplings. My family has a vineyard in Oregon and part of the duty involved with vineyards is hosting wine tasting tours. Brie goes wonderfully with light, delicate, but rich wines like a dry Riesling or a Pinot Noir. Additionally, the mellowness of brie can pair well with a variety of beers as well. As for Mike, an avid artisan in the kitchen, brie provides a wide range of culinary choices. For example, Mike’s favorite dish to make is oven mac & cheese. However, Mike’s signature twist on this beloved classic is to use brie to add a level of creaminess that is sometimes absent with other cheeses. In all, we both appreciate brie by itself and paired with other foods and drinks. The commodity chain for brie includes obtaining raw milk, curdling cheese, turning curds into brie, storage and aging, importation and exportation, and distribution.