Happy National Cheese Lover's Day!

National Cheese Lover's Day – January 20, 2024

HISTORY OF NATIONAL CHEESE LOVER'S DAY

It seems like cheese has been around forever. There aren’t any records pinpointing the exact event when cheese was created, but the earliest record of pasteurizing cheese dates back to 5500 B.C. in the geographical region that’s now Poland. The earliest cheeses were mostly cottage cheese churned at home, and this is likely how cheesemaking started. 

Thousands of years ago, milk was transported by people by storing it in the stomachs of sheep. When left for a few days, the milk would separate into whey and curd. Retaining this residue and preserving it with salt led to the formation of cheese. Today, there are more than 1,800 types of cheese in the world.

The rest of the history of cheese is as extravagant and full of flavor as cheese itself. Enjoyed by royalty, the poor, and modern-day consumers, there is something for everyone. Some parts of the world are very secretive about their cheese heritage, keeping the ingredients and techniques private. 

Cheesemaking itself is a very sensitive process. Everything from the environment, to the temperature of the milk will impact the taste and aroma of the cheese. 

CHEESE BY THE NUMBERS

1,800 — the number of varieties of cheese around the world. 

5 — the number of years it would take to try one cheese per day. 

57,518 pounds — the weight of the heaviest cheese prepared in the world by a Canadian cheesemaker. 

$600-$1000 — the price range that a pound of cheese can sell for. 

300 million pounds — the amount of cheese used annually by Pizza Hut. 

70% — the percentage of Americans who prefer American cheese on their burgers. 

1/10 — the volume of milk that evaporates when the cheese is made.  

33 pounds — the amount of cheese eaten by an American adult every year.