FDA Gone Wild

WHAT THIS GUMMINT DOES          TEXT FDA moves to ban cheese aging on wooden boards   We warned at the time that the ill-conceived Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) of 2011 would tend to choke off many non-industrial food sources. Now the FDA, interpreting FSMA as part of its regulatory process, is moving to ban the aging of cheese on wooden boards, a process that dates back thousands of years and has been practiced safely by many of the world’s finest cheese makers. The agency apparently intends to apply the same standard to imported cheese as well, which means that in addition to devastating artisanal cheese producers in this country, the move would cut off Americans’ access to large numbers of classic European cheeses, many of which, like Comte and Reblochon, “are required to be aged on wood by their standard of identity.” [Jeanne Carpenter, Cheese Underground (Wisconsin); Matt Spiegler, Cheese Notes] by WALTER OLSON on JUNE 9, 2014 Our coverage of FSMA, including its many-sided impact on traditional and artisanal farm and food practice, is here.  And remember boys and girls, the FDA have their own Swat Team.  Several years ago I made a somewhat tortured argument that all laws carry with them, ulimately, the death penalty.  Ahem.