A MyBallard reader writes, “At the Farmers’ Market in Ballard, I noted that the Estrella Family Creamery didn’t have cheese for sale, but rather a bunch of notices that they’d been raided by Federal agents(!?) What’s the story behind this?”
Our news partner, The Seattle Times, is reporting that Estrella Family Creamery was shut down by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) last Friday for fear that some of the cheese may be contaminated with the bacteria called listeria. The FDA does not have the authority to issue recalls, but oftentimes a business will issue one at the request of the federal agency. In this case, according to the Seattle Times, the creamery declined.
Earlier this year, Estrella issued several recalls after the Washington State Department of Agriculture found listeria on cheese samples. “We very aggressively went after the problem,” co-owner Kelli Estrella told the Seattle Times. All the cheese aging in that particular cave was destroyed and production stopped while they improved the facility, the Times reports.
Here is the entire article by the Seattle Times: Estrella Family Creamery shut down by FDA after bacteria found
(Photo of the sign hanging at the University Farmers Market from Jon Rowley @oysterwine via Twitter)