LETTER TO THE
E DITOR Support Colby as the official state cheese
Editor’s note: The following email was sent out by Sen. Kathy Bernier and Rep. Donna Rozar to fellow lawmakers, in support of their bill to make Colby the official state cheese: Colby is one of the most popular cheeses in America, but did you know it was invented right here in Wisconsin and played a major role in transforming Wisconsin into America’s Dairyland?
Long before Wisconsin was synonymous with cheese – nearly 140 years ago - Colby began as a farm family recipe, dreamed up by a young man on the floor of his father’s small, wooden cheese factory in the rich farmland of central Wisconsin.
Named for the nearby town of Colby, its mild, creamy flavor and soft, lacy texture quickly made it a regional hit. The secret was the invention of a unique cold-water washing process that reduced acidity and increased moisture, creating a uniquely buttery, meltable cheese. With this process, cheesemakers were able to trade the crumbly texture and tangy, often bitter flavor of popular semi-hards like cheddar, for the softer, more sliceable and mildly sweet taste of Colby.
This was a giant leap forward for cheese, particularly American cheese, as Colby’s inventive cold water wash is one of only a handful of natural cheesemaking processes native to the United States. The massive impact of this innovation on the dairy industry is hard to quantify, as it not only launched Colby but is now widely used to make Monterey Jack, Gouda, Colby Jack, Cheddar and some Mexican-style cheeses like Asadero.
At the same time demand for Colby was increasing, small cheese producers were popping up across Wisconsin and having a big impact on dairy farmers. Dairy herds were growing and it was becoming clear that Wisconsin had a knack for cheesemaking. By 1916, as demand for Wisconsin cheese grew, Colby was so popular that it was one of just six cheeses selected by the state to be assigned quality grading standards. Colby was such a hit that Kraft began to market the cheese nationwide, helping to turn this Wisconsin original into one of America’s favorite cheeses.
Today, Colby is one of the fastest-growing cheese varieties in the US. More than 65 Wisconsin cheesemakers produce over 40 kinds of Colby, totaling 45 million lbs. of Colby each year, and Wisconsin cheesemakers have won more than 100 awards for their Colby. Colby has even taken the top prize at the World Championship Cheese Contest when Julie Hook, of Hook’s Cheese in Mineral Point, became the first and only woman to be named World Champion for her Colby.
At the national and international level, Colby is one of just a handful of cheeses that national cheese movers and shakers deem a strategic cheese for expanding into overseas markets. As such, it’s one of just four cheeses eligible for federal export subsidies.
If imitation is the highest form of flattery, then Colby has a lot to blush about. Other states and even countries have created Colby-inspired variants, like Michigan’s Pinconning and Frankenmuth cheeses and Mexico’s Queso Menonita and Asadero.
But Colby isn’t just an amazing, awardwinning cheese. It’s an innovative All-Wisconsin original that changed the landscape for cheese and put Wisconsin on the cheesemaking map. Colby is deeply rooted in our state’s history and reminds us that just one small person from one small place, can take an idea and change history.
LRB-2232 celebrates and honors this history and the role that Colby has played in making Wisconsin America’s Dairyland by designating Colby as the official state cheese and including it alongside our other state symbols in the Wisconsin Blue Book. Additionally, no one is saying that there will be free Colby cheese for the offices that co-sponsor this important legislation, but no one is saying that there won’t be, either.
Rep. Donna Rozar ( R- Marshfi eld) State Sen. Kathy Bernier ( R- Lake Hallie)
