Argentine cheese is by far the most produced dairy product in the country, making Argentina the second largest cheese producer in Latin America and among the top 10 cheese-producing countries in the world. [3] In addition, Argentina is the Latin American country that consumes the most cheese, with 12 kilos per capita per year. [4] Production is mainly centered in the provinces of Córdoba, Santa Fe and Buenos Aires, in the Pampas region of the central and east-central parts of the country. [3]
In the 18th century—during the colonial era—Argentina was the place of origin of the Tafí del Valle and Goya cheeses which, along with Chanco from Chile, constitute the oldest cheeses created in the Southern Cone region of South America. [5] Tafí del Valle is the oldest cheese of Argentina and originated in what is now the city of the same name in Tucumán, traditionally attributed to Jesuit missionaries, [5] while Goya was created in what is now the city of the same name in Corrientes. [6] These cheeses are one of the few typical Latin American food products with nearly three hundred years of history, along with tequila from Mexico, pisco from Peru and Chile, and chicha, among others. [5]
Modern Argentine cheesemaking culture emerged as a result of the major European immigration wave that took place during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, [3] [2] which turned Buenos Aires into a "melting pot" and a great cosmopolitan city, while radically changing the customs of both the working and upper classes. [7] These immigrants, especially those from Italy, introduced the cheesemaking technologies of their home countries and attempted to recreate their cheeses. [3] [2] Popular cheeses of Argentine origin include Reggianito, Sardo, Cremoso, Provoleta and Pategrás. [3] [2]
The Argentine dairy industry is highly developed and is among the most modern in Latin America. [3] Cheese is by far the most produced dairy product in the country, accounting for approximately 45% of national milk production, making the country one of the top 10 cheese-producing countries in the world and the second in Latin America after Brazil. [3] More than half of the total cheese production of the country corresponds to soft cheeses (with Cremoso being the most consumed in the country), [8] followed by semi-hard cheeses (30%) and hard cheeses (15%). [3]
Dairy production is mainly centered in the Pampas region of the central and east-central parts of Argentina, the region of the country most influenced by the Great European immigration wave of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. [9] The provinces with the most important cheese production are Córdoba, Santa Fe and Buenos Aires, [3] and to a lesser extent La Pampa, Entre Ríos and San Luis. [9]
Due to the wide range of high-quality cheese produced in Argentina, imports of cheeses are very low—between 2,000 and 8,000 million tonnes—and mainly come from Brazil and Uruguay. [3] The country to which the most cheese is exported is Brazil—accounting for 43% of the total exports as of 2011—followed by Venezuela, Russia, Mexico, Chile and South Korea. [3]
Argentina is also the Latin American country that consumes the most cheese, with 12 kilos per capita per year. [4] As a result of increased consumption, the cheese production in the country grew significantly in the 2000s decade, going from 430,955 tonnes in 2001 to 508,000 tonnes in 2009. [3] During this period, cheese consumption went from 8.3 kg per capita in 2003 to 12.4 kg per capita in 2012. [3]
Argentine cuisine is described as a blending of cultures, from the Indigenous peoples of Argentina who focused on ingredients such as humita, potatoes, cassava, peppers, tomatoes, beans, and yerba mate, to Mediterranean influences brought by the Spanish during the colonial period. This was complemented by the significant influx of Italian and Spanish immigrants to Argentina during the 19th and 20th centuries, who incorporated plenty of their food customs and dishes such as pizzas, pasta and Spanish tortillas.
Tucumán is the most densely populated, and the second-smallest by land area, of the provinces of Argentina.
The milanesa is a variation of the Lombard veal Milanese, or the Austrian Wiener schnitzel, where generic types of breaded cutlet preparations are known as a milanesa.
Oaxaca cheese, also known as quesillo and queso de hebra, is a white, semihard, low-fat cheese that originated in Mexico. It is similar to unaged Monterey Jack, but with a texture similar to mozzarella or string cheese.
Postal codes in Argentina are called códigos postales. Argentina first implemented a four-digit postal code system in 1958, aiming to improve mail distribution efficiency. However, it wasn't until 1998 that the more detailed and comprehensive Código Postal Argentino (CPA) system was launched, significantly enhancing both accuracy and efficiency in mail delivery. Until 1998 Argentina employed a four-digit postal code for each municipality, with the first digit representing a region in the country, except in the case of the city of Buenos Aires. The unique codes became the base for the newer system, officially called CPA.
The following is an alphabetical list of topics related to the Argentina.
Quesillo refers to different Latin American, Spanish, and Filipino foods or dishes depending on the country:
Reggianito is an Argentinian hard and granular cow's milk cheese. It was developed by Italian immigrants to Argentina who wished to make a cheese reminiscent of their native Parmigiano Reggiano. The name—the Spanish diminutive of Reggiano—refers to the fact that the cheese is produced in small 6.8 kg (15 lb) wheels, rather than the huge Parmigiano Reggiano drums.
There are a number of major football rivalries in Argentina.
The Argentine railway network consisted of a 47,000 km (29,204 mi) network at the end of the Second World War and was, in its time, one of the most extensive and prosperous in the world. However, with the increase in highway construction, there followed a sharp decline in railway profitability, leading to the break-up in 1993 of Ferrocarriles Argentinos (FA), the state railroad corporation. During the period following privatisation, private and provincial railway companies were created and resurrected some of the major passenger routes that FA once operated.
Italian Argentines are Argentine-born citizens who are fully or partially of Italian descent, whose ancestors were Italians who emigrated to Argentina during the Italian diaspora, or Italian-born people in Argentina.
Francisco "Paco" Madrid was a Spanish (Catalan) critic, editor, essayist, historian, journalist, novelist, playwright, and screenwriter. He was also a politician.
Tafí del Valle is a city in Tucumán, Argentina. It is located in the department of the same name, of which it is the main settlement, in the west of the Argentine province of Tucumán, 126 km from the provincial capital, San Miguel de Tucumán.
Cheeses in Mexico have a history that begins with the Spanish conquest, as dairy products were unknown in pre-Columbian Mesoamerica. The Spanish brought dairy animals, such as cattle, sheep, and goats, as well as cheesemaking techniques. Over the colonial period, cheesemaking was modified to suit the mixed European and indigenous tastes of the inhabitants of New Spain, varying by region. This blending and variations have given rise to a number of varieties of Mexican cheeses. These are most popular in the country, although European cheeses are made, as well. Almost all cheese in Mexico is made with cows’ milk, with some made from goats’ milk. More recently, efforts have been made to promote sheep's milk cheeses. Most cheeses are made with raw (unpasteurized) milk. Cheeses are made in the home, on small farms or ranches, and by major dairy product firms. Between 20 and 40 different varieties of cheese are made in Mexico, depending on how one classifies them. Some, such as Oaxaca and panela, are made all over Mexico, but many are regional cheeses known only in certain sections on the country. Some of the least common are in danger of extinction.
Cremoso is a semi-soft Argentine cheese made with cow's milk, with or without the addition of cream. It derives from Italian cheeses with similar characteristics as crescenza.
Bolivian Argentines, sometimes called Boligauchos, are Argentine citizens of predominantly or total Bolivian descent or Bolivia-born people who immigrated to Argentina. In recent decades, Bolivia has become one of the main sources of immigration in Argentina, making Bolivians one of the largest Hispanic American immigrant groups in Argentina, along with Paraguayans, Peruvians and Venezuelans.
Fugazza is a common type of Argentine pizza, originating in Buenos Aires, that consists of a thick pizza crust topped with onions and sometimes olives. A similar variant known as fugazza con queso or fugazzetta includes cheese along with the aforementioned ingredients. It is derived from a combination of Neapolitan pizza with Italian focaccia bread.
Sorrentinos are a type of Argentine ravioli, but larger, more circular and originally wrapped without fluted edge. The dough is made with flour and eggs, and the filling of the original recipe consists of York ham and mozzarella.