Cutting the Curd returns after a brief hiatus! This week, Anne Saxelby is joined in the studio by Diane Stemple of Jasper Hill Farm. Diane will be hosting Cutting the Curd while Anne is on maternity leave! Tune in to hear how Hurricane Sandy affected the cheese business in New York City. Bedford Cheese Shop, Saxelby Cheesemongers, and Murray's Cheese are all located in Lower Manhattan and suffered because of the storm. Veronica Pedraza of Meadowood Farms calls in to talk about her experiences last year with Hurricane Irene in Vermont, and to talk about the Dairy Sheep Association of North America Symposium this year. What barriers do people face when starting a sheep dairy? Learn why people like sheep as a multi-purpose animal, but why sheep dairies are still suffering in the United States. This episode has been brought to you by Whole Foods.

"If your parents have a cow dairy, and they're struggling to find a way to make it viable, you can turn that into a cheese-making operation. But no one's really inheriting sheep diary farms from their families. The infrastructure on farms that currently exist... a lot of the designs are meant for cows." [14:00]

-- Veronica Pedraza on Cutting the Curd

Anne Saxelby reviews some recent cheese headlines on this week's episode of Cutting the Curd. Anne is joined in the studio by founder of Heritage Foods USA, the Heritage Radio Network, and husband, Patrick Martins, to sort through all of the true and false cheese stories of the past year. Find out how much stolen muenster was found in the back of a tractor trailer. Learn more about government cheese, and cheese and pizza chains. How is tennis player Novak Djokovic linked to donkey cheese? Tune into this episode to hear about some recent cheese fires in Norway, and how some farmers are using smartphones to milk their cows! This program has been brought to you by Academie Opus Caseus

This week's Cutting the Curd is all about Mexican Cheese! Our hosts Anne Saxelby and Sophie Slesinger are joined in the studio by Carlos Yescas of the Guild Du Fromage and Lactography. Carlos is currently working with the government of Chiapas to help grant a collective trademark to cheese makers of queso de cuadro. Joining via phone is Catalina Rivera, an award winner for sheep's milk cheese in the World Cheese Awards. Also on the phone is José Trejo of Chiapas, maker of cincho, queso de cuadro, and cotija. Learn about markets for Mexican cheeses in the United States, and the best way to use some of these cheeses in your cooking. This program was brought to you by Fairway Market.

"We had to begin from the start. We didn't know anything about raising sheep, and we didn't know anything about making cheese." --Catalina Rivera on Cutting the Curd

"Support from the government is key to access to markets in the United States." -- José Trejo on Cutting the Curd