When it comes to cheese, it’s safe to say that it’s loved by most folks. Everyone has their favorite, whether it’s a header full of cheddar or taking a knee for brie. You love it on pizza or as a dip for your chips, but most cheese aficionados.

So why would Wisconsin want to go and designate one as the official state cheese? That’s what the state legislature is looking to do, and it’s not the first time it’s been tried. On several occasions, elected officials have tried to make colby the cheese of the land.

This is not a good idea.

There’s no denying that the cheese has a unique history in a place known as America’s Dairyland. colby got its start in 1885 by a man named Joseph Steinwand, who named it after the township he lived in. The family built the first cheese factory in the area.

Still, you’ve got other types of cheese that are just as popular as colby, not to mention cheeses that are produced in greater quantities. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, more than 45 million pounds of colby are produced annually. However, the state produces more than 3.4 billion (that’s with a B) of cheese in all varieties, so colby production is just a drop in the bucket.

Mozzarella is the top cheese crafted in Wisconsin, with cheddar coming in second and a couple of Italian cheeses bringing up the rear. Yet we’re gunning for colby. It makes no sense.

A host on National Public Radio’s Morning Edition compared the declaration of a state cheese to be akin to picking which one of your kids is your favorite. You can do it, but it’s a good way to cause dissension in the state. Despite the fact that the bill has bipartisan support, this seems like something that would divide the state at a time when we should be united.

The bill is being supported by Rep. Donna Rozar and Sen. Kathy Bernier, who both represent the city of colby. They tout the bill as a celebration of rural history and the state’s dairy heritage. They can dress up the sentiment all they like, but it still smells like camembert.

Bernier claimed in a Milwaukee Journal Sentinel story that colby was the cheese that put Wisconsin on the map in terms of great cheesemakers. While that point could be argued, we already recognize cheese as our official dairy product, not to mention milk as the state beverage and cows as the state’s domestic animal.

The difference is there are a variety of cows, milks and cheese. These designations don’t tout one type above another. We already have plenty of tributes to cheese and where it comes from. Designating colby as the cream of the crop doesn’t seem like a gesture that will make the state feel good. My sweetheart described it as a cross between awkward and just plain weird.

Besides, our legislators have other issues they should be focusing on. Voting regulations are being challenged, and the issue should be figured out. There’s debate on whether or not the Holocaust and other genocides should be mandatory to teach in schools. There’s also the issue of whether schools should still be required to start the new year on or after Sept. 1.

All of these and more bills are being circulated in the legislature, jockeying for attention. Why should a bill designating a state cheese get priority over other bills? The bill did not get through in 2019, nor did a similar effort make it to the governor’s desk in 1997. Debating cheese and which one should wear the state crown seems like a poor use of our legislators’ time.

If you take a look around the state, we have crumbling infrastructure. Our roads have more potholes than Swiss cheese. Perhaps instead of trying to bring this colby bill back to life again and again like a never-ending phoenix.

We have a labor shortage, causing many businesses to reduce their hours and thus curtail their productivity. This is a higher priority than colby.

It’s time for the bill to be put in the back of the refrigerator and left there. We love our cheese, and we love that Wisconsin is one of the biggest producers of cheese of all kinds. We don’t need a state cheese, and there have to be better ways to pay tribute to colby that don’t require the state to make it the chosen one. The legislature should put this muenster of a bill back on the shelf and get back to the people’s business.