Pure Cheese

Organic milk, referred to as the gateway to organic food, is widely available. Not so for cheese. Locate one of the few organic cheeses on the market, and it's likely to come enshrouded in plastic and taste like wax. So what to do if you love the stinky, runny, firm or nutty but prefer not to spread hormones, antibiotics and pesticides on toast points?

In the search for chemical-free alternatives, some flavor seekers eat only European cheese. They hope that government-enforced standards like the French AOC (appellation d'origine contrôlée) and the Italian DOC (denominazione di origine controllata) result in minimal exposures to pesticides and antibiotics. But that's not necessarily the case. Sort of like government-sanctioned heirloom varieties, "AOC ensures that cheese is made in a way that preserves and protects its traditional character," explains Zoe Brickley, affineur of the unparalleled Murray's Cheese in New York City.

Alex Garcia, director of affinage at cheese-mecca Artisanal, adds, "What those name control designations usually refer to is that a certain cheese needs to be made in a specific area from a specific breed of animal from a specific recipe. They don't have much to do with the way the animals are fed or the land treated." Still, sometimes these standards can accidentally protect consumers: The beneficial bacteria needed to create traditional parmesan are thrown off by antibiotics, says Marco Nocetti at Italy's Consorzio del Formaggio Parmigiano Reggiano. And the growth hormone rBGH is banned in Italy and France, so traditional cheeses made with regionally sourced milk would not contain it.

Even the most ardent cheese-o-phile, however, need not add food miles to her favorite fromage. Find worry-free—and local—cheeses at farmers' markets and at shops with obsessive staff members whom you can ask specific questions about antibiotics, hormones and feed. And let go of the idea that only certified organic equals pure; organic certification can be prohibitively expensive. "I know plenty of cheesemakers who go past organic who don't have that stamp," Garcia says, singling out Vermont's Jasper Hill Farm. "They have the only cows I have ever met that don't stink. Even the barn smells wonderful."

CHEESE PICKS

* Cobb Hill Farm Ascutney Mountain Cheese: This southern Vermont farm practices sustainable land management and organic farming ($22/lb.; www.murrayscheese.com, 888-692-4339).

* Jasper Hill Dairy Constant Bliss: This raw cow's milk cheese, also from Vermont, is made from fresh, uncooled evening milk ($10.50/8 oz.; www.artisanalcheese.com, 877-797-1200).

* Green Valley Dairy White Noble: This white, cave-aged cheddar is certified organic and made with winter milk from cows fed organic hay ($24/lb.; www.greenvalleydairy.com, 215-523-9951).