This dissertation examines the origins and development of the cheese industry in rural Ontario between the 1860s and 1930s from the perspective of environmental history. Scholars have generally accepted contemporary beliefs that cheese was a “natural industry of this country” and that its growth was cooperative and inevitable. This dissertation tests these claims by comparing the rhetoric and actions of the rural elite and state officials against the human and extra-human work involved in manufacturing cheese for export, a method that has yielded new interpretations about the character and development of the industry. I build on James Murton’s concept of “alternative rural modernity” to argue that rural cheese manufacturing was a project of rural reform encouraged by elite ‘dairy reformers,’ rather than a natural development. Reformers believed cheese factories could support the social, economic and environmental stability of rural society indefinitely. Through cheese, they sought to create a society that was liberal and capitalist, but also cooperative and stable. They also believed that dairying would restore fertility to the region’s soils. In practice, however, their results were mixed. Although cheese became one of the province’s most significant export-oriented industries, transformed the environment, and deepened liberal values amongst rural people, it failed to deliver the alternative rural modernity reformers had envisioned. I provide two reasons why. First, the reformers’ mechanistic vision could not contend with the complexity and unpredictability of the socio-ecological world they sought to control. Second, the industry could not withstand the pressures of the emerging global capitalist food system and, ironically, facilitated the rise of ‘Big Dairy’ after the First World War, which hastened the industry’s demise. Overall, this dissertation emphasizes the dynamism of rural Ontario, contributes to an environmental history of liberal order in Canada, and contextualizes the resurgence of craft-based rural development in the twenty-first century. / Thesis / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) / This dissertation examines the origins and development of the factory cheese industry in rural Ontario between the 1860s and 1930s. I challenge the belief that cheese manufacturing was a “natural industry of this country” whose development was cooperative and inevitable. Instead I argue that the industry was a deliberate project of rural reform encouraged by elite ‘dairy reformers’ who believed cheese factories could sustain the social, economic, and environmental progress of rural society indefinitely. The industry failed to deliver all the reformers promised, even though it became one of the province’s most significant export-oriented industries by the early-twentieth century and transformed the environment and rural society in the process. Rural people and the environment behaved in more complicated ways than reformers anticipated, and the changing capitalist economy made the industry’s long-term success untenable. This study also contextualizes the twenty-first century resurgence of craft production in Ontario.

Sales of cottage cheese have been on the decline since 1972. Several factors have contributed towards this decline, including limited shelf-life. Cottage cheese shelf-life is estimated to be 10-21 days, in standard, non-barrier containers held at refrigeration temperatures. Shelf-life is shortened when aerobic, psychrotrophic microorganisms grow at refrigeration temperatures, producing changes which are undesirable. Previous studies have demonstrated that modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) is able to maintain cottage cheese quality and extend shelf-life over air packaging. The objectives of our study were to evaluate the ability of MAP to maintain cottage cheese quality, while establishing the proper atmosphere to be used. Further, we wanted to determine the potential for discoloration and development of undesirable acid flavors in cottage cheese by elevated CO₂ levels. Direct-set cottage cheese was packaged in barrier containers and flushed with 100% CO₂, 75% CO₂:25% N₂, 100% N₂, and air, and stored at 4°C for 28 days. Product quality was assessed by sensory evaluation. Microbiological and chemical tests were conducted to obtain a better understanding of the effects of MAP on cottage cheese. Results obtained demonstrated that there was no change during storage for headspace gas composition. Psychrotrophic and lactic acid bacteria increased for air treated samples. Counts for MAP cottage cheese remained unchanged. In contradiction to previous studies, elevated CO₂ levels did not cause product discoloration. Acidity increased over storage life; however, the increase in acidity was not perceived organoleptically. These results contradicted previous studies which demonstrated that elevated CO₂ levels imparted a sharp acid flavor to the food product. Lactic acid did not contribute towards increased acidity. Sensory evaluation demonstrated that air treatment was inadequate in maintaining product quality past day 19. Cottage cheese packaged under 100% CO₂ was judged most acceptable, followed by 75% CO₂ - 25% N₂, and 100% N₂ treatments. / Master of Science

The objective of this study was to develop a decision making tool to determine economic feasibility of artisan cheese operations. A survey of current Oregon artisan cheese companies was used to gain knowledge of the fixed and variable costs associated with cheese production and business start-up. The data from this survey was used to design a business model within Microsoft Excel 2010 that effectively describes the business environment in which an artisan cheese company could exist. Economic feasibility was determined through net present value (NPV) and Internal Rate of Return (IRR) of the investment. The model estimates size of the production and aging facilities based on production volume and cheese types produced. The application of the tool is demonstrated in this study through testing of several scenarios within each area of investigation: impact of milk pricing, cheese styles, product retail price, and geographical location of the creamery. The model also predicts the minimum product retail pricing necessary to ensure a positive NPV of the potential venture at several sizes of production and across several different styles of cheeses. / Graduation date: 2012