Pelardon Cheese June 12, 2008

The other farm that we visited along with the honey farm was a goat milking operation. This was actually the wife of the honey farmer whom I spoke about previously.

The manager of the operation (Mrs. Perrier) milked 80 goats and managed them pretty much by herself. She also made all of the cheese, which was exclusively Pelardon cheese. Pelardon which is an AOC cheese, (a type of cheese whose name is protected under French law), is incredibly creamy and wonderful raw milk cheese and is in fact one of the oldest cheeses in Europe. The Pelardon we tasted was aged at 11 and 14

days. At 11 days the cheese is creamy, almost gooey after breaking the mold, and has a strong taste that lingers. The 14 day cheese on the other hand, was salty, acidic and more dry- but with an excellent flavor.

Raw milk cheese is a big debate, but her operation was pretty impressive. The goats are milked 6 at a time with an automatic milking machine that feeds directly into the creamery (where the cheese is made). Then Mrs. Perrier seperates the curds and whey, applies rennet and monitors temperature and humidity on a strict schedule. Overall she makes 28000-32000 cheeses per year.

While she is not organic, she proudly uses homeopathy that she has learned from other farmers to manage her goats instead of antibiotics. And of course the goats aren’t given any hormones to make them milk longer. She, just like many other French farmers we’ve encountered, have a philosophy of proactivity through good monitoring and management rather than a reactive one.

On Saturday, we’ll be leaving… but because I’m so behind I will be writing about the experiences for at least a few days longer.

Cevennes Honey June 10, 2008

In the Cevennes last week we also visited a goat/honey farm. Strange combination eh?

The husband, who used to work for the Nestle corp. making chocolates, decided to give up his position and move back to his father’s farm to work in apiculture (honey production). The wife, on the other hand became interested in goat production and moved into making a special type of goat cheese called Pelardon, which I will write about later.

First, I should say that I have the utmost respect for people who raise and care for bees since they make vegetable farming possible! Not to mention they provide a fantastic product; so needless to say I was really excited to visit with this man.

Since the hives are spaced all over the Cevennes hills and it would have been difficult to see them, we instead visited the building where the processing takes place. The farmer had a lot of capital to begin his operation, so the tanks and processing equipment were all very new and beautiful. He quickly explained the process of extraction (nothing new), and showed us around, then it was time for questions! I found out that the honey producers in France are experiencing a significant problem with the condition called Colony Collapse Disorder, which is also affecting apiculturists worldwide. This producer was experiencing about a 25 percent loss each year, which was definitely cutting into his profits. However, he had begun to diversify by making chocolates, candies and cakes- which tasted phenomenal! We learned that the farmer took classes for about one week in a local village in order to make these sweets, and it was a government program that provided this education. Still, the recipe which he loves the most (and was adored by the group) took him almost 6 months to perfect.

Finally, we experienced some local honey. Have you ever tasted Lavender Honey??? The farmer we visited featured many kinds, including one exclusive to the wildflowers that grow in the high altitudes of the Cevennes; but my favorite is still the Miel de Lavande or lavender honey. It was literally a floral flavor, but creamy and pure white in color.

Well sorry to say I have to go, but I will write about Pelardon and Roquefort tomorrow!

Sheep Herding June 9, 2008

In the Cevennes National Park we visited quite a few sheep farmers. Some were raising sheep for meat while others raise the animals for milk. While driving up to the Cevennes you sort of realize why this land is perfect for grazing animals… it’s incredibly hilly. Getting up to the “Massif Central” area and plateau, proved to be a very winding road.

But once we were there it was quite beautiful, and rather cold and windy. The sheep didn’t seem to mind though. The farms which they roamed were massive and the largest we visited had something like 500 acres of pasture land.

The milking operations were interesting to see as well. It was all very mechanized and safe, just like in the U.S, and all of the milk is sold to cheesemaking companies to make raw milk cheeses.

The group visited a cheesemaking company on the Massif Central plateau and tasted cheese that is illegal in the U.S; I wish I could say that I really loved it, but the taste it really strong, and we all agreed that the taste of the cheese reminds you of the smell of the sheep. But the extremely aged cheeses were delicious- and everything they made was done so with great care, since it is done with raw milk. But that is another issue entirely.

We finished the day by bidding the farmer farewell, as he slowly moved his 200 sheep into their pasture with the help of his faithful dogs and his walking stick.

This is the result of all that grazing… great cheese.

The Cevenne June 3, 2008

Today we depart for the Cevenne National Park, about 2 hours north of Montpellier. It is not a national park as we think of it in the US, instead it’s just a place where land is being reserved but no more development can take place. Thus there are still many farms which can have a livelihood without being concerned too much with development pressure due to urbanization.

So, because it is a national park there is little internet access- so again there will be little opportunity for me to post anything.

I can tell you that we’ll be travelling to a chesnut farm (a big crop here apparently), a goat farm, a pig farm and just about any farm in between.

We’ve already discovered that some on this trip are deathly afraid of anything that moves and whine and cry about mud being on their shoes- so it should be an interesting experience to see them on the farm. I hope I can provide a little help in having conversations with farmers- since many of the girls on this trip have never been on a farm in their life.

Ah well, it should be interesting to say the least!

Then after the Cevenne- it’s nothing but vineyards and wine tasting for a week!

Home Sweet Home… Florac!

Farmers Markets! June 2, 2008

We finally visited one of the many farmers market in France! The Marche de Arceaux, is located under the ancient Arceaux aquaducts built by the romans. Sorry, I am not able upload my pictures onto the school computers here, otherwise I’d share the experience visually as well.

First, I learned that their not actually called farmers markets here, they are referred to as “open air markets.” And just like in the US there are still wholesalers at these markets, so it’s not as romantic as I had hoped. I actually got up a little early in order to see everything, and there were still farmers setting up when I arrived. Unlike farmers markets in the US, vendors are assigned their stalls on a first come, first serve basis. I also couldn’t find any one person, like a market master, helping people set up. And the differences didn’t stop there…

In the US everyone is very concerned with food safety, yet it is strictly enforced at a farm market, but lax concerning industrial farms, where small mistakes can multiply into large disasters much more quickly. Farmers are generally more careful which the products they sell because of the more direct relationship with the consumers and thus the food is safer because of this direct marketing.

What was really amazing to the kids here who are Nutrition majors, and are taught everything about food safety is the apparent “lack of it.” They thought it was strange for people to handle money and they freely dive their hand into a large tub of salad mix and pull out the pieces they want. Almost everything was offered in a buffet style, get a bag and take what you want sort of fashion.

In the US we’re not allowed to give samples, but here farmers regularly cut a slice of something to ensure their customers of its taste and quality. We were supposed to observe people shopping, and many of the customers freely tried individual fruit like cherries or strawberries without asking- but they also purchased things after. At other stands which sold sausages, bread, honey or jellies- they would freely give samples seemingly without expectation of purchase. At this Open Air Market the level of sensory experiences was astonishing. Everything smelled as it should, looked and was presented beautifully, and tasted even better.

Just like in the US it was also easy to pick out the wholesalers from the farmers. The farmers just threw everything into the largest baskets I’ve ever seen and attached crude price signs. The wholesalers just kept things in the boxes and placed them on their table- but they were much more honest than some of the wholesalers in the US since they often labeled the origin. I saw a lot of boxes from France, and some from Italy, many from Spain and a few from Morrocco. The farmers were also a little more grungy- so it was easy to pick them out of a crowd.

All and all it was a great experience- the quality of produce was high, and what we would call unusual vegetables like endive, fennel, fava and chicory, were the staples at the market. When I’m back in the states, I’ll upload the pictures to share too!

1st Week Abroad June 1, 2008

I finally have some time to write, although it is without spell-check, so what I write is subject to a little error.

We’ve just finished our first week in Montpellier, living at the University L’Agro. My French skills have seen a marked improvement, and although I am still unable to carry on a full conversation, I can generally understand what everyone is talking about! Thanks to my Spanish skills.

Anyway, this first week has been busy. We actually haven’t been able to go to many farms yet, but there have been many interesting debates over issues concerning farming.

Just like in the U.S. France is facing issues of urbanization and sprawling suburbs. While their suburbs are much more conscience of land use, and reserve much of their land for natural purposes, many of the people are still flocking to Montpellier because of the climate. The houses we saw in the burbs were each worth about 1 million (US) dollars, because land prices and building costs are still high. In stark contrast, we also visited an ancient community just outside Montpellier, whose centre square was built in 1024. It had all of the typical European design features that you think about in an old town; tile rooves, narrow stone streets, iron balconies and nice cafes surrounding the fountain in the middle of town. Needless to say it was beautiful, but few people want to live in these places anymore. Apparently, they have become more individualistic, just as we are in the US and younger generations desire their own space, no matter what the cost.

The group also spent a lot of time talking about issues of labeling, especially concerning grocery stores. We visited one store called Carrefour, which has a great relationship with the farmers who stock its shelves and has the packaging to support their views. They have their store brands well catagorized to help consumers decide how to spend their money. They have the lowest price items branded with a special label, and then the environmentally friendly brands, based on practices the farmers sign off on, labeled boldly. Agriculture Biologique is also featured everywhere- which is the equivalent to Organic in the US. I could talk for quite some time about their labeling system- but all I can say is that I hope the local Meijer’s will be smart enough to invest in something similiar.

Carrefour actually has a mutually beneficial relationship with their local producers, and there is no size requirement in order for a farmer to sell to them. None of the animals are allowed to be given hormones in anything they sell, and of course GMOs are banned.