“We’ve got a cheese problem.”
That’s what I said to former Rep. Paul Ryan when Mateo Kehler (owner of Vermont’s Jasper Hill Farm) asked for my help. You see, team, the FDA wanted to ban artisan cheesemakers, like Mateo, from using wooden boards to age their cheeses—a totally safe, centuries-old practice.
For Mateo, this potential regulation was not only bad policy, it was an existential threat to his business. He needed back-up from his representative to fight it. I immediately invited him into my office so we could face the problem together, head-on.
What happened next was an efficient and effective display of bipartisanship.
Paul Ryan and I don’t agree about much, but we agreed on this—we needed to save cheese businesses, just like Mateo’s, all over the country. So I approached Paul on the House floor and told him, “we’ve got a cheese problem” and need to address it now.
He agreed, so we walked off the floor and called the FDA, together, and made sure they followed the science. Soon after, the FDA backed down and issued an apology to cheesemakers for the overstep.
I’m happy to report that Mateo’s farm is still thriving in Greensboro today (and still making award-winning cheeses!). I am always ready to champion Vermont’s working people and businesses; I’ll work across the aisle, and I’ll stand up to anyone to get the job done.
And if you’re ever facing a problem like Mateo’s, where you need someone to defend your interests in Washington, just give my office a ring. It’s my job to help Vermonters every day.
Check out this video update from Mateo below (and get a peek of his cavernous cheese setup— with wooden shelves):
[[link removed]].
Thank you,
Peter
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