Meet The Healthy Cheese Lady and Buy Her “Cheese Makes Me Happy” T-Shirt

Meet Babs Hogan, aka Healthy Cheese Lady and purchase her new “Cheese Makes Me Happy” here.

For years she has bugged me to sit down via skype and do an interview which I have resisted. I hate my on-camera “look” and while I’m far from shy, I am “camera-shy”. So the irony of my interviewing Babs was not lost on either of us.

• When did that “aha moment”  occur? Was it one moment or did it build over time?
• What is a kinesiologist and how does it assist you in your healthy cheese journey?
• If you could only give one piece of advice re cheese and health, what would it be?

And here are her answers:

My aha moments happened during the Texas Cheese Tour in 2012. I visited many cheese businesses and farms.  Each one taught me something new.  You can read about the tour here. 

(Babs has ninety-two videos on her youtubechannel memorializing her Texas Cheese Tour. The index is here.) 

I spent three hours with Stuart Velhuizen, owner of Velhuizen Cheese, a farmstead cheese company near Waco, TX.  The original videos had music but YT demanded that I remove it, even though I had permission to play music by John Morgan! 

AHA #1:

Stuart’s relationship with his cows was impressive.  He was very concerned about the newborn calf that we saw in the pasture.  I pointed to a pond and asked why the cows weren’t drinking out of it.  He said, “Oh, they drink fresh water from stainless steel containers.  See them over there?”  I was surprised to learn this!  The grass is green most months of the year.  He plants a variety of grasses, not native to Texas.  He also plants different herbs and flowers.  His cheese is dark yellow, a sign of an abundance of beta carotene found in the grass.  Keep in mind that my visit with the Veldhuizen farm was only my second trip on the tour.  In the summer months in central Texas, the grass starts to suffer due to the heat and low amount of rain.  The day I was at his farm was in late May and it was about 100 degrees already.  I was impressed that the grass was so lush, thick, green, and bountiful.  All of the herd looked healthy and vibrant.  The calves were with their mothers in the pasture.  When I started the TCT, my MAIN concern was how the animals were treated.  After my visit with Stuart, those concerns vanished.

AHA #2:

My next stop was with Karen and Eric Tippit.  Their farm was called Caprino Royale Farmstead Cheese, located near Waco.  (No longer in business).  I was impressed when Karen told me that she walked the goats everyday for 45 minutes on their property.  She called it a “supervised” walk with the “kids.”  I replied, “I wish that humans walked their kids everyday.”   Another striking point that she made was that in the winter, she knits sweaters for the baby goats and brings them into the house to stay warm.  They sleep in baby pens in the living room. These pens are usually occupied by human babies.  She showed the pens and sweaters to me.  That was really impressive.

AHA #3
When I visited Haute Goat Creamery in Longview, Texas, I interviewed co-owner, Laura Vanderbilt.  The company was named after a wonderful goat named Nicole.  At the time, she was retired, but was still living on the farm, located in northeast Texas.  She was so popular and loved by the farmer, she was allowed to live out her life there, rent-free.  Look at Part 2 of the video.  Go to 5:56 and watch what Laura said about kissing the goat.  Very funny.  I drove to the farm who provides the milk for the cheese and loved to see the baby goats hanging out with their mothers.  They looked healthy and happy. 

Part one of the Haute Goat Creamery interview:

Marcella, by now, you see a common thread in these videos. At the time, the treatment of the animals was #1 on my radar.  Since then, I have learned about the quality of the cheese.  I’ve been studying the health benefits of quality cheese since 2011.  I remember my first conversation with my husband about cheese.  Of course, as a career health professional, I was convinced that cheese was unhealthy for humans and avoided it for years.  He announced that he was going to Montreal, Canada to attend the 2011 American Cheese Society conference and I couldn’t understand why.  When he came back, all he talked about was cheese, dairy animals, cheesemakers, and how to make cheese.  I grew tired of it quickly.  After a few loud, heated discussions, he suggested that I meet cheesemakers in person throughout Texas, so I could get to know them and learn about their craft.  THAT started the TCT, which took two years to complete.  My last two interviews were with Cathy Strange and my husband, Dan.  

Cathy Strange’s comments were stunning, especially at the beginning of the video.  She praised Texas cheesemakers in various ways. 

My husband, Dan Hogan has been a home cheesemaker since 2011.  My interview with him was the last one published.  Here is the short version:

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 Kinesiology is the study of the dynamics of human movement and its components (anatomical, physiological, neurological, biochemical, etc.)  I have a BS in kinesiology from Texas A&M and a master’s in kinesiology from the University of Texas (Tyler campus).  I was a personal trainer, college teacher, and health coach throughout my career.  You asked how my knowledge about kinesiology assists me in my healthy cheese journey.  Great question.  The more I study human metabolism in terms of nutrition, the more I appreciate the valuable nutrients found in high-quality cheese.  Having a background in physiology is a great starting point.  Even my classes in Exercise Metabolism (biochemistry), have been helpful.  The science of exercise nutrition has changed a lot since 2011 and I constantly challenge myself to stay current.  I’ve been a Certified Exercise Physiologist through the American College of Sports Medicine for decades.  Even though I don’t work as a kinesiologist now,  I continue to review recent research on many topics:  obesity, diabetes, osteoporosis, and mental health.  One of my favorite topics to explore is the human microbiome.  Since the science is pretty new, there’s always something fascinating to learn.  And as you know, Marcella, cheese has an abundance of healthy microbes!  BTW, I was a speaker at the 2013 ACS conference in Madison, with Max McCalman and Mark Windt, MD.  Dr. Windt talked about the microbiome. You can view the ACS event here.

You asked:  “If you could only give one piece of advice re: cheese and health, what would it be?”  I consider the microbiome to be the most important topic in human nutrition today…even beyond cheese.  Many doctors and researches say that all diseases start in the gut.  ALL diseases.  Millions are suffering needlessly with health problems.  By focusing on gut health, many illnesses can be cured, or at least, improved.  I’m talking about physical AND mental health.  For the past nine years, I’ve been studying this topic and it is absolutely fascinating.  It’s never boring.

 You asked:  “Was it one moment or did it build over time?”  Answer:  The first year of the TCT lit my fire.  Add to that, when I read Nina Teicholz’s book titled The Big Fat Surprise, I knew that my world would change.  It did.

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Babs also has an impressive number (130 as of this posting) of interviews with Cheese Swells which she calls Cheese Hangouts. You can check them out here.

My thanks to Babs for taking the time to share her “Aha moments” with us.

Again, Babs has created her first “Cheesy” T-Shirt in a new line of clothing. The T-Shirt is only $20 and you can order it here. Everyone needs this T-Shirt because it’s true: “Cheese Makes Me Happy”.

In addition to being a member of the Internationale Guilde des Fromagers (Jura and Garde) and an American Cheese Society Certified Cheese Professional, I am a Certified ServSafe Food Production Manager with certifications that also include ServSafe Certified Instructor and Proctor. I am available for cheese events, cheese program development, cheese training, food safety training and 3rd party food safety auditing. See my About Me and Resume pages for more details or call me at 360 921 9908 to discuss availability.