[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 25 (Monday, February 13, 2017)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E178-E179]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       HONORING COWGIRL CREAMERY

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. JARED HUFFMAN

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                       Monday, February 13, 2017

  Mr. HUFFMAN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize Cowgirl Creamery 
and its founders, Sue Conley and Peggy Smith, in honor of the 20th 
anniversary of this artisan cheese company, which has over the past two 
decades been a leader in the evolution of the local, state, and 
national artisan cheese market.
   Opened in 1997, the idea of Cowgirl Creamery began years earlier 
when Sue and Peggy, each with twenty years of culinary experience, 
settled in Point Reyes Station in West Marin, California. Inspired by 
local agricultural matriarch Ellen Straus and her son, Albert Straus, 
who established organic milk producers west of the Mississippi, Sue and 
Peggy decided to combine their culinary expertise and environmental 
stewardship ethos to create an artisan cheesemaking business. Several 
years after purchasing a barn in downtown Point Reyes Station, and 
after renovating, restoring, and acquiring the permits to open Tomales 
Bay Foods as a distribution company, Cowgirl Creamery was opened.

[[Page E179]]

   Over the next twenty years, Cowgirl Creamery became an organic-
certified creamery known for its award-winning cheeses, and its 
founders became leaders in sustainable food and artisan cheese movement 
in the North Bay. With over ten different types of cheeses produced 
from milk from neighboring dairies and two creameries with a staff of 
nearly 100, the company is still growing its business and influence in 
the region. At the time of its opening, there were few cheese companies 
in Marin and Sonoma. Today, the West Marin region is considered a dairy 
and cheese appellation, and the region's artisan cheese industry has 
bloomed thanks in large part to the success of Cowgirl Creamery. There 
are 28 cheesemakers in the region and more in the making, and the 
Marin-Sonoma Cheese Trail boasts a large following.
   Not only did the founders of Cowgirl Creamery serve as advocates and 
mentors for local agriculture and cheese producers, they engaged with 
non-profit organizations supporting sustainable agriculture and with 
government officials to advance the interests and growth in the 
environmentally-responsible food movement. Sue served on the board of 
Marin Agricultural Land Trust for 18 years and is on the board of the 
California Artisan Cheese Guild. Peggy serves as President of the 
American Cheese Society, a national platform that provides educational 
resources for other cheesemakers, retailers, distributors and cheese 
enthusiasts.
   Inducted into the Guilde des Fromagers in 2010, Cowgirl Creamery has 
earned the respect of international cheese experts in addition to their 
robust reputations in the regional and national artisan cheese 
marketplace.
   From producers to consumers, Cowgirl Creamery occupies an 
unparalleled space in its influence on artisan cheesemaking worldwide. 
Mr. Speaker, on the occasion of their 20th Anniversary it is fitting to 
honor and thank Peggy, Sue, and Cowgirl Creamery for their impressive 
success and generosity, and to wish them success in the decades to 
come.

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