Australian
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Teacher’s notes

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This clip shows cheesemaker and dairy farmer Jon Healey from Pyengana in north-east Tasmania talking about his family’s 100-year history in the dairy and cheesemaking industry. In a room full of ripening cheddar cheeses, he tells food writer and journalist Maeve O’Meara that he feels like the custodian to the style of cheese he is making in Pyengana. Friesian cows are shown attached to a milking machine. Intercut with scenes from the valley, Jon explains that the milk from Friesian cows is preferred for cheesemaking owing to a low fat content and high levels of minerals that are required to 'set’ the cheese. He reflects on the beauty of the valley and the lifestyle it offers.

Educational value points

• The small dairy town of Pyengana in north-east Tasmania is featured. Set in a small, lush valley east of Launceston, Pyengana means 'meeting of two rivers’ in the local Indigenous Australian language. The abundance of water and the richness of the soil makes the area prime dairy and cattle land. Permanently settled in 1875, the Pyengana Cheese Cooperative operated from 1895 until 1958. The advent of supermarkets and pre-packaged cheese saw the popularity of handmade cheeses fall during the 1970s and 80s. In recent times, traditional methods of cheesemaking have once again become popular.

• The history of cheesemaking in Pyengana is described. Jon Healey, a fourth generation Pyengana dairy farmer and cheesemaker with a family history spanning 100 years in the area, specialises in English-style cheddar. At 16 he studied the craft of cheesemaking in Switzerland and returned to Australia to establish the Pyengana Cheese Factory in 1992. Acquiring the equipment that originally belonged to his grandfather in the 1950s, he began to make cloth-bound cheddar cheese just as his forebears had done. His strong sense of 'custodianship’ of the process is communicated in this clip.

• Cheddar cheese is shown being produced using traditional methods. The acclaimed Pyengana cloth-bound cheddar is made using vats and moulds built in the 1950s. While several Tasmanian dairies make cheddar, Pyengana dairy is the only one that uses the stirred curd method. Stirring the curd allows the whey to drain out more easily and strengthens the curd. The resulting cloth-wrapped cheese is turned and wiped several times a week for the rest of its life to keep the mould away and help build its sweet, nutty flavour.

• Pyengana cheese is made from milk from Friesian milking cows. It is an important part of the process that the milk used to make the cheese be of a high quality and consistent fat content. Friesian cows are a prime milk-producing breed with a fat yield of approximately four per cent and the milk contains minerals that help to set the cheese.

• An aspect of the Tasmanian economy is explored. As a small island state without the advantages that size and scale bring to the larger Australian mainland states, Tasmania, although criticised for the destruction of its old growth forests, has capitalised on the beauty of its natural environment and developed high-quality niche market products to develop its economy. Businesses such as the Pyengana Cheese Factory produce low volume, high quality products for the export and tourism markets. Tasmanian food and beverage exports are the state’s second most important export sector, and the Australian Bureau of Statistics reports that in 2002, 58 per cent of total Tasmanian exporters were located in regional areas, reflecting the relatively decentralised nature of the island compared to most other Australian states.

• The Food Lovers’ Guide to Australia series is a celebration of Australia’s strong food and lifestyle culture. This Special Broadcasting Service (SBS) television series presents Australia’s rich and multicultural culinary traditions and diverse produce. Joanna Savill and Maeve O’Meara are experienced journalists and television presenters who travel around Australia producing episodes of the program, which won the gold medal for Best Food and/or Drink Television Show (Long-Form) at the 2005 World Food Media Awards.