Food Protection Trends - March 2009 - 148

ARTICLES Copyright© 2009, International Association for Food Protection 6200 Aurora Ave., Suite 200W, Des Moines, IA 50322-2864 Food Protection Trends, Vol. 29, No. 3, Pages 148–154 Microbiological Safety of Farmstead Cheeses Made in the United States and Purchased via Online Shopping LISA P. RAMSEY 1* and JULIE A. FUNK 2 Virginia Dept. of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Lynchburg Regional Animal Health Laboratory, 4832 Tyreeanna Road, Lynchburg, VA 24504, USA; 2Dept. of Large Animal Clinical Sciences, 165 Food Safety and Toxicology Building, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824, USA 1 INTRODUCTION SUMMARy Farmstead cheeses, made right on the farm from the milk of the cheesemakers’ own animals, are rapidly growing in popularity in the United States. Many of these cheeses are available for purchase via online shopping, and thus can be obtained by consumers far removed from where the cheeses are produced. The objective of this study was to evaluate the microbiological safety of farmstead cheeses purchased online. A total of 61 samples of farmstead cheeses purchased from 39 different cheesemakers in 24 different states within the United States were tested for the presence of Salmonella, Listeria monocytogenes, Escherichia coli O157:H7, Staphylococcus aureus, and coliform bacteria. Of the 61 cheeses tested, only seven were found to be unacceptable. One sample was found to be contaminated with Group B Salmonella, three samples had high S. aureus counts, and three samples had high coliform counts. Most of the cheeses, which are perishable products, were cold or cool upon arrival, but the product labeling of many of the cheeses was inadequate, which would make it difficult or impossible to trace it back to the maker should this be necessary because of an epidemiological investigation. A peer-reviewed article *Author for correspondence: Phone: 434.947.2518; Fax: 434.947.2577 E-mail: Lisa.Ramsey@vdacs.virginia.gov Cheese has been made and consumed by people worldwide for thousands of years (16). Prior to modern technology and the ability to mass produce, cheese was made by hand in small batches. Cheesemaking was a labor intensive process, but it was a way to produce a nutritious food item with a much better shelf life than the milk from which it was made. Modern high-tech food processing methods provided a way to make cheese efficiently and produced a convenient, affordable, and consistent product that many consumers enjoyed. With the availability of manufactured cheese, fewer people bothered to make cheese the oldfashioned way. In recent times, there has been a renewed interest in cheeses made the old way, and the number of “artisanal” cheesemakers has increased substantially in just a few years (2). Many of these artisanal cheesemakers make their cheeses right on the farm where the milk-producing animals are raised and maintained. Artisanal cheeses made on the farm from the milk of the farmer’s own animals are called “farmstead” cheeses (2). In early 2006, the Vermont Farmstead Cheese Marketing Study determined that Vermont farmstead cheesemakers made over 148 FOOD PROTECTION TRENDS | MARCH 2009

Food Protection Trends - March 2009

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