# maybe I should consider Grade A



## hsmomof4

Just got a call from the grocery that carries our laundry soap. The cheese manager wanted to know if I make cheese. (They have AWESOME cheeses there.) So while I can't do that right now, it sure was cool to be asked! dance:


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## buckrun

That is wonderful Stacey- it shows people are interested in and demanding real food.
I hope your laundry soap flies off the shelf! You will have to get DH to retire and stay home to help.


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## hsmomof4

That, Lee, is EXACTLY the plan!!


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## Faye Farms

I'm asked all the time about cheese. KS is severely lacking in local artisan cheeses. Well, any sort of cheese really. I'm thinking, in my long term plan, that I really need to add a small licensed cheese production area. 

It is most certainly in my long term plan to get DH back on the farm full time too! I know I was lucky to have him all to myself for the first 10 years we were together.


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## MF-Alpines

That's great, Stacey.


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## NubianSoaps.com

You don't have to be a Grade A facility to sell milk to a cheese plant. The cheese plant has the food manufacturing liscense and they do not have to buy milk from a Grade A facility. I can have a commercial kitchen and sell milk from Lonesome Doe to my commercial kitchen facility...it's done all over. In fact I can't even think off the top of my head one dairy that sells their milk to a cheese maker that is grade A, not here or in Dallas at the big mozzerella plant, nor when everyone in the south was selling to....and the name of the company that canned goatmilk just went out of my head  So as always check your local regs!


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## Faye Farms

One thing I have been wondering about, but have not done anything to look into, is see if I can use a commercial kitchen to make cheese and sell at farmers market. I need to find out if it can be just any licensed commercial kitchen or if it would need special certification to make cheese in. Also if there would be issues with me transporting milk and also if my dairy would need to be licensed again (it's not now). It sure would be a way to break into cheese making without the huge investment of building the commercial kitchen first. There are people I know that have a commercial kitchen 5 miles from my farm. I know that it has not been used very often in the last couple of years. 

As a side note, in WI we were a grade A dairy and all of our milk went to a cheese plant. They're finicky about their cheese though. There were grade B dairies in WI but WI was working on getting rid of them, at least in the area where I moved from.


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## NubianSoaps.com

Yes you can use a commercial kitchen already liscensed, we have a few in our town, and some rent out space. It's a nice way around the rules. But....neither of the two places in driving distance of me, would allow you to store the cheese to cure it, and it would be expensive to even rent the time to let the curds set, so is it then legal to cure or let curds drain in your fridge in your home...likely not. Now making fudge, cheese cake etc...that can be done.


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## nightskyfarm

Yes, I would say Heather that you would need to license your dairy to use your own milk and you can rent a kitchen to produce the cheese, but you would need an inspected aging room to age it in and/or acess to an approved pasteurizer if you were to sell fresh cheeses. Transporation method of milk to the approved kitchen would have to meet your state's guidelines; such as kept under 40 degrees at all times, moved in approved containers etc.


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## Faye Farms

Good to know this might be an option.


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## TroyG

Just as FYI in Texas you will need to hold a Grade A license to sell your milk to cheese makers starting Jan. 4th. So make sure you check your state laws before assuming you can sell to cheese makers without a license.


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