Vive le (raw milk) Camembert!

In a David versus Goliath battle, smaller local makers of Camembert cheese have won a victory against some much larger producers (The Tocqueville Connection/AF). Two industrial giants, Lactilis and Isigny Cooperative, had waged an appeal with the commission on Appellation d'Origine Controlee (AOC) designations to have their cheeses, which do not use raw milk, as still worthy of an AOC. This label indicates that the foods and wines which carry it are unique, prepared under strict conditions, and only with certain ingredients. It's a symbol of quality. True Camembert, however, uses only raw milk, which makes it difficult to export to places like the U.S., where regulations require pasteurization that impacts the flavor of the cheese. (Many view the U.S. restriction as more political than based in real threat to well-being.) The loss for the big guys, who claimed that the raw milk cheese carried unhealthy bacteria, is unlikely to impact their overseas business, but may have repercussions in the local market. The A.O.C. commission determined that the dangers of raw milk cheese were "infinitesimal."