Smithsonian - Perishable Pundit

FESTIVAL PARTICIPANTSFood Culture USACheeseaffinity for farming and cheesemaking is hereditary; his paternalgrandfather emigrated to an Iowa(powder, butter, chocolate) underitsown management. El Ceibowas also quick to recognize theMelanie Cochran, KeswickCreamery, Newburg, Pennsylvaniadairy farm from Switzerland, whereprior generations had been dairyimportance of organic farming.As far back as 19X7 it converted aMelanie Cochran makes aged,raw milk cheese at Keswickfarmers 111 the Alpine foothillsoutside Chür.large part of its cocoa productionoperations to organic proce-Creamery's no-acre farm inthedures, and in[988 organically[97]Cumberland Valley. The farm hasCesare Marocchi,certified cocoa was marketed45 [ersey cows that rotation. illygraze. Keswick produces cheddar,Chevy Chase, MarylandCesare Marocchi was born inand exported throughout theworld for the first time.Wallaby, Dragon's Breath, feta,Italian herb feta. feta de Provence,tomato & basil feta, and (seasonally)Carrock and Calverly.Castel Forte, Italy, and came tothe United States as an Italiandiplomat. Instead of returning toItaly, he went into business with aCoffeeMshikamano Farmers Association,Mbeya Region, TanzaniaAllison Hooper,llebsterville, VermontAllison Hooper started theVermont Butter & CheeseCompany with Bob Reesein 1984. She learned artisanalfriend and started the Washingtonrestaurant Vice. Marocchi was oneof the first in the Washington areato make fresh mozzarella fromcheese curd. He owns Marcella'sRestaurant in Chevy Chase.Mshikamano Coffee Group is.1 cooperative of approximately300 farmers in five villagesin the southern highlands ofsouthwestern Tanzania, nearZambia. Founded in 1995 byDavid Robinson, m partner-t heese making as a collegestudent studying in Francein the late 1970s. Located 111Websterville, their companybuys its goats' and cows' milkfrom a network of local farms.Rob Kanfelt, NewYork, NewYorkAs owner of Murray's CheeseShop, the famous GreenwichVillage gourmet food store,Rob Kaufelt travels throughoutMaria Moreira,Lancaster, MassachusettsMaria Moreira, whose familyimmigrated to the UnitedStates from Portugal in the1960s, farms and makes cheese.Morena also teaches sustainablepest management to Hmongfarmers as part of a program toprovide land, skills, and accessto markets in Massachusetts.ship with rural farming families,Mshikamano provides coffee toSweet Unity Farms, an independentbrand established byRobinson. Sweet Unity Farmsbegan selling its coffee internationallyin[999. Mshikamanorecently received investmentcapital from the AfricanDevelopment Foundation tofinance the expansion of itsproduction and enhance its inter-Europe and America in search ofnew and exotic cheeses. He is .mactive member of the Amerit .111Cheese Society, and his dedicationto cheese retail has earnedhim a medal from France'sGuilde des Fromagers.As he says,"Remember... Cheese Rules!"Mike Koch, FireFly Farms,Bittinger, MarylandKoch and his partner Pablopurchased the 130-acre farm 111 [997Wendy ll'icbe, Orange, I 'irginiaWendy Wiebe raises heritagelivestock on her farm in Orange.Working the farm with SuffolkPunch draft horses, she raises pigs.chickens, turkeys, sheep, cows,vegetables, fruits, and berries. Sheuses milk from her dairy cows tomake cheese, butter, and yogurt.ChocolateEl Ceibo, Rio Beni, BoliviaEl Ceibo became the world'snational marketing activities.Cooking DemonstrationsAnn Amernick, Washington, D.C.Ann Amernick is ExecutivePastry Chef and owner of PalenaRestaurant. Before openingPalena, she was assistant pastrychef at the White House andpastry chef at Jean-Louis at theWatergate. She has been nominatedfor Outstanding Pastry Chefby the James Beard Society, andand have spent the last five yearsrenovating the property and devel-first small farmers' cooperativeto manufacture—and, sinceshe has been twice named to theTen Best Pastry Chefs in Americaoping a small dairy business. Koch's1986, to export—cocoa productslist by Chocolatiei Magazine.FESTIVALPARTICIPANTS