Colby cheese might become Wisconsin's official cheese. Earlier this month, state lawmakers held a public hearing on Senate Bill 371 that would make Colby the cheese representative to America's Dairyland.
Colby cheese was first developed in 1885 by Joseph F. Steinwand in his hometown: Colby, Wisconsin. Sheila Nyberg, director for the Clark County Economic Development Corporation and Tourism Bureau, says her office has been a long proponent of getting Colby its recognition.
"When I think of Swiss, I think of Switzerland. When I think of Italian cheese, I think of Italy. Colby cheese was started in the U.S.A.," Nyberg says."Colby, Wisconsin, U.S.A. Wisconsin! It’s a Wisconsin home-brewed, homemade, home-begun."
Previous bills supporting the designation made their way through the legislature in 1997 and 2019. Even back in 2020, The Colby High School Show Choir sang a song celebrating the wheel of cheese:
As a major dairy producer, Nyberg wants to make sure that Wisconsin preserves this piece of the state's history and celebrates it.
"We're synonymous with cheese. But it all started somewhere. We're America's Dairyland. And it's a piece of our history that we shouldn't ignore ... It is really time to give Colby the title it deserves in the state of Wisconsin. And let's all celebrate it, making our history known" Nyberg says.
