Bravo Farms in Tulare County is making cheese again after recalling all its varieties in late November due to an E. coli scare.

A shipment of Dutch-style gouda made with raw milk was contaminated with the bacteria and wound up sickening more than 30 people in the western United States who got it from Costco stores.

The artisan cheese-maker shut down its factory in Traver and halted sales while it looked for the cause. But a determination has eluded the company and officials with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the state’s Department of Food and Agriculture.

“We sold the same gouda to other stores and there were no reports of illness,” said Bravo Farms co-owner Jonathan Van Ryn. “Normally the fermentation is supposed to be the natural defense against the pathogens.

“For some reason, it didn’t work, or it was during packaging that it got contaminated. It could have been just one day’s worth, one batch worth.”

To read the full article follow this link to the Business Journal story:
http://www.thebusinessjournal.com/retail/8023-bravo-farms-back-in-busine...

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