Cheese Standards
Cheese companies must meet the following criteria for at least 50% of their product line:
- Made in the USA or US territories.
- Made with dairy milk derived from the lacteal secretions of one or more healthy hooved mammals.
- Products must adhere to FDA Standards of Identity (21 CFR 133\) for cheese. If not defined in 21 CFR 133, the product must be made with legally pasteurized mammalian milk, or, if made with unpasteurized milk must meet minimum time and temperature requirements for curing defined under that standard.
- Made by the entrant’s own company, with milk from animals raised using good animal husbandry* with access to the outdoors.
- Made without the use of synthetic herbicides, pesticides, fungicides or fertilizers on the pastures.
- Made without hormones or sub-therapeutic antibiotics.
- Made with rBGH-free milk.
- Made with sustainable repurposing of byproducts, such as whey, where possible.
- Made with milk from animals fed local, GM-free feed where available. Where it is not, the crafter is invested in being an agent of change towards greater availability, by working with suppliers and local granges, vocalizing their interest in this type of local feed if and when it becomes available.**
- Made with other ingredients, such as rennet, starter cultures, yogurt additions, herbs and washes that are sourced domestically or locally (where possible) and produced without the use of synthetic herbicides, pesticides, fungicides, fertilizers and non-GMO.
- Made by a crafter that is an upstanding member of the Good Food community, committed to equity and inclusion in all levels of their business, as exemplified through integrating these practices:
- Creating a safe and healthy work environment where employees receive a fair wage, are safe and respected at work and have access to the resources they need to keep themselves healthy.
- Offering a diversity, equity, and inclusion training to staff members and/or leadership annually.
- Thoughtfully acknowledging the heritage of culturally-specific food on websites, packaging and/or marketing materials.
- If your company is Publicly-held, Owned/Partially-owned by publicly-held compan(y)ies, or has over $100 million in annual revenue, your company, as well as its parent company(ies), are required to meet additional criteria to become Good Food Qualified:
- Offer a minimum of 12 weeks of paid parental leave to all employees
- Have at least one woman, minority, or LGBTQIA+ representative on their Board of Directors
- Have a proven track record of prioritizing a safe and fairly-compensated work culture, with no violations in the area of wage or workplace safety in the past 5 years. This will be verified on the Good Jobs First Violation Tracker
Apply to join by reaching out to membership@specialtyfood.com.