Evening star., 1929-12-04
FOREIGN CHEESE
DUPLICATED HERE
sAir Conditioning Methods
Overcome Handicaps in.
Manufacture.

s American ingenuity has turned its at
aention to the art of cheese making
with the result that even Roquefort
Ahat district in southern France which
has been famous for its delicious cheese
Tor more than 800 years, may soon find
the United States a closed market.
! Air conditioning equipment, tempera-
ture controls and processing devices
have produced under American conol-
4ions cheese that even connolSseur
would hesitate to pronounce domeStlc'
Add to this the sanitation and the at
4ractive methods for handing Iouno
here and the reason for the wide prefer
Rnce being given American cheese Is
evident.
Americas Greatest Industry.
The United States now has almost
1000 cheese factories, ACCORDING 70
q, w. Larson, director OF the Natlonai
0sirv Council and formerly chief OF
the Bureau of Dairy Industry, OnlIed
states Department of Agriculture. WIN
the 5000 creameries and 300 conoen-
series and evaporated milk plants they
form Americas greatest industry, oolTg
"a 600 600 600 annual business and out
rsnkinp the automobile industry, tne
country's next greatest, bs $1,000, ,oOO'eOU
when executives of the cheese fac
4ories turned their attentict % repro
1Iscsnr under American colIulClons the
F3eIicafely favored and aged cheeses OF
famous French and Swiss dlstrlcCS they
mae faced first with the problem OF
relJrJducing atmospheric and chinaVlc
fondirlonS.
SOO-Year Leadership.
i RHoLefort, unchallenged for elgnt
centuries as the home OF the WoTiu
finest cheese, was studied. NO oCLlet
sheep-raising district in the Worlo mas
where an accident 800 years ago led to
4he discovery of what has since been
known as Roquefort cheese.
shepherd tending his hooks, aC-
Aording to the tradition, hid his luncn
nf bread and native cheese OF sheep
milk in a cave, intending to return 1oI
AZ when he was hungry. Somethi,le M
Snteryened and he did not return 70 tne
rayern for several weeks. Inc OIedG
was spoiled and the cheese was covered
with green mold. Ine snephs,o "as
1,nngrv however, and he nibbled al
the Cheese. Great was his surprise al
the unusual and pleasing haVor. LaIeL
generations are fortunate that ne was
curious of mind and decided TO see II
he could produce more cheese OF the
same favor.
Cooled in Moist Caves.
Z The Roquefort caves owe their un-
usual properties to the cool, moist all
that flows perpetually through them
THE end away from the mouth OF the
cave connects with assure that ao'
lnits air from the surface heavy In
moisture and never varying in tempera-
4ure. The environment is ideal fol
the propagation Of the vegetable molc
Mhich gives Roquefort cheese its pecul-
Gar quality.
Y The production in America OF q
cheese similar to Roquefort was at
tempted many times since 1851, when
the first cheese factories began opera.
tions here. but ultimate success awaited
developmentS in other unrelated In
Siustries. No way of controlling hu-
anidity and temperature simultaneously
occurred to the cheese makers until the
perfection for factories, schools, theaters
and other places of air conditioning
equipment which produced atmospheric
conditions most desirable for comfort
Then there remained only the applica.
Aion Of such equipment to the needs OF
the cheese industry.