Where is cabot cheese made

She acknowledged that only about companies had attained B Corp status up to that point but made a compelling case for why we should join them. It might not catch on with customers right away, but eventually all corporations will need to operate this way. I was sold. We decided in that very meeting to go for it. It took us two years to get scored on every metric and overcome a few legal hurdles relating to our co-op status. Then, in , the B Lab standards analysts officially certified us as a B Corp.

We had always been a company determined to do the right thing. This was affirmation of that mission and a big part of why I was proud to take over the role of Cabot CEO in The first lesson is to find and listen to people who have a knack for predicting the future.

For us, on ESG issues, that was Roberta. Third, know that success really does stem from focusing on the common good rather than on the enrichment of certain groups. Great things come from working together.

Just over a century ago, in , a group of farmers in Cabot, Vermont, had a problem: They were producing more milk than the local community could consume.

Then they had a bright idea: If they pooled their excess and transported it to other towns, or turned it into longer-lasting products such as butter and cheese for wider distribution, they could generate a healthy income and divide it among themselves. The Cabot cooperative was born. In the s the group, then 56 farms, added a cheese-making facility, and in the s and s, with added capacity from even more farms, it started making cultured products—sour cream and cottage cheese.

But those goods were sold locally—within about a mile radius and to a few Vermont ski areas and restaurants, none of which advertised their use of Cabot cheese. In the early s the co-op, by then comprising about farms, finally started marketing to food-services groups in Boston. But not until did it realize that its products had much greater growth potential.

The ensuing recession left Cabot with little marketing money to capitalize on the award, but that changed in when it merged with Agri-Mark, a larger, 1,farm co-op. The broader group which is officially called Agri-Mark Family Dairy Farms, though we still refer to ourselves as Cabot was able to push its products beyond Vermont and Boston into other areas of the northeastern United States.

Our cooperative now includes farms many farms close when no one in the next generation takes over spanning Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, and New York.

The board of directors meets for two days each month to review tactics and strategies and to share best practices. This is what I love about the co-op structure: Although each farm operates as an independent business supplying our joint production facilities, our members collaborate for the benefit of the group.

When suppliers are shareholders, however, they do have the power to put the management team in a tricky position. Our farmers provide high-quality milk; they could vote to pay themselves well above market rates. But they understand that if the co-op is to survive and thrive over the long term, our branded products must be priced competitively enough to sustain customer demand.

Personally, I love having those farmers as my bosses. I appreciate the fact that the people doing the most and hardest work, caring for and milking their cows every day, are the ones who profit the most from our business.

In fact, in , Vermont cows outnumbered Vermont people , to , It was at this time that the company hired its first cheese maker and cheddar cheese entered the product line. That trend continued into the s when the total number of farms in Vermont sank below 2,, less than one fifth of what it had been just a few decades earlier.

By this time, the co-op was marketing its high-quality cheeses and butter under the Cabot name. Because most components of feeds are broken into smaller components during digestion by the animal, plant proteins have not been detected in milk, meat or eggs. More than 40 crops have gone through the FDA consultation process and been developed for market, ensuring that any human food or animal feed derived from new plant varieties are safe to eat.

No antibiotics are in any Cabot products. We conduct tests for antibiotics on all milk before it enters our plants according to all federal and state laws and regulations. There are serious penalties and consequences for our farmers if they were to ship milk from an animal on antibiotics. Cows occasionally get sick, just like humans do, and have to be administered antibiotics.

The farmer dumps that milk until it is clean of any residue. Testing throughout the milk handling process ensures that no mistakes can be made.

Check the label for information about the rBST status of a particular product. If there is no icon, the rBST status of the product cannot be assured. With this system, the consumer will always know at point of purchase if a claim can or cannot be made.

On December 20, , the U. With enforcement beginning on January 1, , the final rule provides a consistent and national labeling standard, preempting efforts by state officials to enact individual state labeling laws that imposed contradictory and costly labeling requirements. Cabot is working with their suppliers to determine what ingredients contain BE material. An appropriate compliance strategy will be drafted and implemented after all the information has been received. You can access this more information about this legislation here.

In general, eating any aged cheese should not affect those with lactose intolerance because lactose — the major carbohydrate in milk — disappears within 3 to 4 weeks after the cheese is made. During the cheese-making process , the microbial-based enzymes coagulate milk into curds and whey. The whey, which contains most of the lactose, is drained from the curds. The curds are then pressed into cheese.

If any residual lactose remains in the cheese, it will be completely broken down within 3 to 4 weeks. Learn more about our Lactose-Free cheese here. Due to our sourcing, we cannot guarantee spreads to be wheat-free. Repacked deli cheese is wrapped at store level where gluten could be present leading to contamination. Cabot is certified kosher and offers a broad range of kosher dairy products, including cheese, cultured products and butters.

Under the supervision of a rabbi, Cabot maintains kosher standards. In addition, Cabot offers a broad range of halal cheddar cheeses that have met the rules and regulations specified by a supervising Islamic Administrator. With the exceptions previously noted, Cabot Cheeses are made without any animal rennet.

Look for this icon on the packaging of your favorite Cabot cheese products to be sure they are certified. Be sure to look for this icon on the packaging of your favorite Cabot cultured or butter products to be sure they are certified. A rabbi must inspect the production and packaging of our products before certification is given.

Some Cabot products do not qualify for kosher certification because the packaging or production takes place in facilities that are not our own.

Cabot Creamery produces cheese nearly every day of the year, and we naturally age our cheese anywhere from 3 months to 5 years. We are not able to do so and market our cheese effectively. Cabot Cream Cheese, Whipped Cream and Spreadable Cheddars are sourced from plants that may produce products that contain nuts or tree nuts. Some say this preference dates back many centuries to when cheesemakers tried to match the exact color of cheddar from Cheddar, England.

Regardless of preference, we use a coloring called annatto. Annatto is from a South American plant and does not affect the flavor or the texture of the cheese. Skip to Main Content. Search for: Submit Search Button. Still no luck? Expand All Collapse All. How is Cabot cheddar cheese made? Explain the aging process of Cabot cheese. Who determines whether Cabot's Cheddar is mild or sharp? Are Cabot products made with pasteurized milk?

How many gallons of milk are needed to make cheese and butter? Does Cabot offer organic products? What kind of rennet is used to make Cabot cheeses?

What happens to the whey after it is drained from the cheese curds? What is the best way to store Cabot cheese? Is refrigeration required for Cabot's waxed cheeses? What is the best way to travel with Cabot Cheese? Can I freeze Cabot cheeses? Can butter be stored at room temperature?

Can I freeze Cabot Butter? Why did my cheese mold before the sell-by date? Why is my cheddar so crumbly? Why is my cheese wet? What are the hard white objects in my Cheddar Cheese? In the cut-and-wrap plant, an employee places a block of cheese on a conveyor where it will be converted into smaller formats.

Regional Plant Manager Marcel G. Gravel has been making cheese for almost 45 years. Replacing open vats with enclosed vats has improved the yields and the quality of cheese, said Chris Pearl, the manufacturing team assistant plant manager. Agri-Mark is a dairy cooperative with 1, members in the Northeast United States. It markets 3. Agri-Mark also operates four processing plants of its own with two in Vermont Cabot and Middlebury, that make cheese, cultured products and ingredients , one in West Springfield, Mass.

The co-op owns the Cabot and McCadam brands. See related article. Dairy Foods toured the Cabot, Vt. The plant produces Cheddar and specialty cheeses, yogurt and sour cream. Milk tankers begin arriving at 4 a. The receiving area can handle three trucks at a time unloading two and cleaning one. Tankers hold 3, to 5, gallons of milk. Gravel noted that before trucks are allowed to hook up to the system, milk samples are drawn and sent to the on-site lab.

The seals are checked and cross-checked against paperwork to make sure the seals are the same, he said. The entire receiving process, from testing samples to unloading, is computerized, said Chris Pearl, the manufacturing team assistant plant manager. The lab sees the load come in on the computer. The sample goes to the lab and they check it for antibiotics, and do a direct microscope count on it. Other tests include organoleptic and color checks. He noted that the Vermont standard for standard plant count is , and for the milk it receives, the SPC is less than 10, Milk arrives at 38 to 40 degrees and is kept cold throughout the handling.

Flow meters measure the quantity of the raw milk coming out of the trailer as it flows into the silos. The Cabot plant has one 30,gallon-capacity silo and three 50,gallon silos.

The pasteurized milk then flows directly into the vats. The plant has four 44,pound horizontal cheese vats. New equipment has made the cheesemaker more efficient. Instead of hand milling curd, the equipment does it.

While automation has increased yield, cheesemaking still requires human intervention. Art and science are required. The Cabot plant essentially runs three shifts. Pearl breaks it down as two-and-a-half production shifts and half a shift for cleaning and sanitizing. And the next crew comes in and then it takes another 45 minutes from there to start filling the towers.