Raw milk cheese legal and delicious

Here’s an excerpt from a Feb. 4th, 2009 story in theStar.com by food writer Susan Sampson:

Cheese guru Girth Pretty is bringing 17 raw milk cheeses to his Cheesy Soirée on Feb. 18 for guests to taste and buy. Tickets are $40 and include a glass of beer or wine. Star photo by Keith Beaty.

“Gurth Pretty sells cheese at Toronto farmers’ markets – raw milk cheese. Some customers are taken aback.

“People would say, `But isn’t that illegal or unsafe to eat?'” Pretty recalls.

“There is a lot of misunderstanding by consumers,” he adds, “and even by the local health board.”

When he first informed the city he planned to sell raw milk cheese, the official on the phone said, “Hey, that’s not legal.” Pretty said, “Take another look.” There was a pause and the flipping of pages.

The man probably just heard the words “raw milk.” That phrase has been high on the public’s radar since the arrest of farmer Michael Schmidt, now on trial for distributing raw milk. The trial is expected to end tomorrow.

Pretty says the trial has created confusion. “The mission is to inform the consumer that raw milk cheese is legal to make.”

Daisy’s not just “one of the herd”

This is a little snippet from Michael Kesterton’s “Social Studies” in the Globe and Mail newspaper  (originally from The Western Mail):

Worker Recognition

Cows given names such as Daisy are said to produce more milk than nameless cattle. Researchers at Newcastle University says cows treated with the “personal touch” are happier and produce higher milk yields than cows treated as one of a herd. Their study suggests that giving a cow a name and treating her as an individual can increase milk yields by as much as 285 litres a year. Dr. Catherine Douglas, who conducted the research, said “Just as people respond better to the personal touch, cows also feel happier and more relaxed if they are given a bit more one-to-one attention.”