Cheddar cheese (or simply cheddar) is a natural cheese that is relatively hard, off-white (or orange if colourings such as annatto are added), and sometimes sharp-tasting. It originates from the English village of Cheddar in Somerset, South West England.[1]
Cheddar is produced all over the world, and cheddar cheese has no Protected Designation of Origin (PDO). In 2007, the name West Country Farmhouse Cheddar was registered in the European Union and (after Brexit) the United Kingdom, defined as cheddar produced from local milk within Somerset, Dorset, Devon and Cornwall and manufactured using traditional methods.[2][3]Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) was registered for Orkney Scottish Island Cheddar in 2013 in the EU,[4] which also applies under UK law.
Globally, the style and quality of cheeses labelled as cheddar varies greatly, with some processed cheeses packaged as "cheddar". Cheeses similar to Red Leicester are sometimes marketed as "red cheddar".
Cheddar is the most popular cheese in the UK, accounting for 51% of the country's £1.9 billion annual cheese market.[5] It is the second-most popular cheese in the United States behind mozzarella, with an average annual consumption of 10lb (4.5kg) per capita.[6] The United States produced approximately 3,000,000,000lb (1,300,000 long tons; 1,400,000 tonnes) of cheddar in 2014,[7] and the UK produced 258,000 long tons (262,000 tonnes) in 2008.[8]
History
Cheddar cheeses on display at the Mid Somerset Show
Cheddar cheese originates from the village of Cheddar in Somerset, southwest England. Cheddar Gorge on the edge of the village contains a number of caves, which provided the ideal humidity and steady temperature for maturing the cheese.[8] Cheddar traditionally had to be made within 30mi (48km) of Wells Cathedral.[1]
The 19th-century Somerset dairyman Joseph Harding was central to the modernisation and standardisation of cheddar.[9] For his technical innovations, promotion of dairy hygiene, and volunteer dissemination of modern cheese-making techniques, Harding has been dubbed "the father of cheddar".[10] Harding introduced new equipment to the process of cheese-making, including his "revolving breaker" for curd cutting; the revolving breaker saved much manual effort in the cheese-making process.[11][12] The "Joseph Harding method" was the first modern system for cheddar production based upon scientific principles. Harding stated that cheddar cheese is "not made in the field, nor in the byre, nor even in the cow, it is made in the dairy".[9] Together, Joseph Harding and his wife introduced cheddar in Scotland and North America, while his sons Henry and William Harding were responsible for introducing cheddar cheese production to Australia[13] and facilitating the establishment of the cheese industry in New Zealand, respectively.
During the Second World War and for nearly a decade thereafter, most of the milk in Britain was used to make a single kind of cheese nicknamed "government cheddar" as part of the war economy and rationing.[14] As a result, almost all other cheese production in the country was wiped out. Before the First World War, more than 3,500 cheese producers were in Britain; fewer than 100 remained after the Second World War.[15]
According to a United States Department of Agriculture researcher, cheddar is the world's most popular cheese and is the most studied type of cheese in scientific publications.[16]
During the manufacture of cheddar, the curds and whey are separated using rennet, an enzyme complex normally produced from the stomachs of newborn calves, while in vegetarian or kosher cheeses, bacterial, yeast or mould-derived chymosin is used.[17][18]
"Cheddaring" refers to an additional step in the production of cheddar cheese where, after heating, the curd is kneaded with salt, cut into cubes to drain the whey, and then stacked and turned.[17] Strong, extra-mature cheddar, sometimes called vintage, needs to be matured for 15 months or more. The cheese is kept at a constant temperature, often requiring special facilities. As with other hard cheese varieties produced worldwide, caves provide an ideal environment for maturing cheese; still, today, some cheddar is matured in the caves at Wookey Hole and Cheddar Gorge. Additionally, some versions of cheddar are smoked.[19][20]
Cheddar cheese maturing in the caves at Cheddar Gorge
Character
An unusual cheddar cheese that has been matured to produce veins of mould
The ideal quality of the original Somerset cheddar was described by Joseph Harding in 1864 as "close and firm in texture, yet mellow in character or quality; it is rich with a tendency to melt in the mouth, the flavour full and fine, approaching to that of a hazelnut".[21]
Cheddar made in the classical way tends to have a sharp, pungent flavour, often slightly earthy. The "sharpness" of cheddar is associated with the levels of bitter peptides in the cheese. This bitterness has been found to be significant to the overall perception of the aged cheddar flavour.[22] The texture is firm, with farmhouse traditional cheddar being slightly crumbly; it should also, if mature, contain large cheese crystals consisting of calcium lactate– often precipitated when matured for times longer than six months.[23]
Cheddar can be a deep to pale yellow (off-white) colour, or a yellow-orange colour when certain plant extracts are added, such as beet juice. One commonly used spice is annatto, extracted from seeds of the tropical achiote tree. Originally added to simulate the colour of high-quality milk from grass-fed Jersey and Guernsey cows,[24] annatto may also impart a sweet, nutty flavour. The largest producer of cheddar cheese in the United States, Kraft, uses a combination of annatto and oleoresin paprika, an extract of the lipophilic (oily) portion of paprika.[25]
Cheddar was sometimes (and still can be found) packaged in black wax, but was more commonly packaged in larded cloth, which was impermeable to contaminants, but still allowed the cheese to "breathe".[26]
Original-cheddar designation
The Slow Food Movement has created a cheddar presidium,[27] arguing that only three cheeses should be called "original cheddar". Their specifications, which go further than the "West Country Farmhouse Cheddar" PDO, require that cheddar be made in Somerset and with traditional methods, such as using raw milk, traditional animal rennet, and a cloth wrapping.[28]
International production
The "cheddar cheese" name is used internationally; its name does not have a protected designation of origin, but the use of the name "West Country Farmhouse Cheddar" does. In addition to the United Kingdom, cheddar is also made in Australia, Argentina, Belgium, Canada, Germany, Ireland, the Netherlands, New Zealand, South Africa, Sweden, Finland, Uruguay and the United States. Cheddars can be either industrial or artisan cheeses. The flavour, colour, and quality of industrial cheese varies significantly, and food packaging will usually indicate a strength, such as mild, medium, strong, tasty, sharp, extra sharp, mature, old, or vintage; this may indicate the maturation period, or food additives used to enhance the flavour. Artisan varieties develop strong and diverse flavours over time.[citation needed]
Australia
As of 2013, cheddar accounts for over 55% of the Australian cheese market, with average annual consumption around 7.5kg (17lb) per person.[29] Cheddar is so commonly found that the name is rarely used: instead, cheddar is sold by strength alone as e.g. "mild", "tasty" or "sharp".[30]
Canada
Following a wheat midge outbreak in Canada in the mid-19th century, farmers in Ontario began to convert to dairy farming in large numbers, and cheddar cheese became their main exportable product, even being exported to England. By the turn of the 20th century, 1,242 cheddar factories were in Ontario, and cheddar had become Canada's second-largest export after timber.[31] Cheddar exports totalled 234,000,000lb (106,000,000kg) in 1904, but by 2012, Canada was a net importer of cheese. James L. Kraft grew up on a dairy farm in Ontario, before moving to Chicago. According to the writer Sarah Champman, "Although we cannot wholly lay the decline of cheese craft in Canada at the feet of James Lewis Kraft, it did correspond with the rise of Kraft’s processed cheese empire."[31] Most Canadian cheddar is produced in the provinces of Québec (40.8%) and Ontario (36%),[32] though other provinces produce some and some smaller artisanal producers exist. The annual production is 120,000 tons.[33] It is aged a minimum of three months, but much of it is held for much longer, up to 10 years.[citation needed]
Percentage of butterfat or milk fat must be labelled by the words milk fat or abbreviations B.F. or M.F.[35]
New Zealand
Most of the cheddar produced in New Zealand is factory-made, although some are handmade by artisan cheesemakers. Factory-made cheddar is generally sold relatively young within New Zealand, but the Anchor dairy company ships New Zealand cheddars to the UK, where the blocks mature for another year or so.[36]
United Kingdom
The four English counties where West Country Farmhouse Cheddar PDO may be produced
Only one producer of the cheese is now based in the village of Cheddar, the Cheddar Gorge Cheese Co.[37] The name "cheddar" is not protected under European Union or UK law, though the name "West Country Farmhouse Cheddar" has an EU and (following Brexit) a UK protected designation of origin (PDO) registration, and may only be produced in Somerset, Devon, Dorset and Cornwall, using milk sourced from those counties.[38] Cheddar is usually sold as mild, medium, mature, extra mature or vintage. Cheddar produced in Orkney is registered as an EU protected geographical indication under the name "Orkney Scottish Island Cheddar".[39] This protection highlights the use of traditional methods, passed down through generations since 1946 and its uniqueness in comparison to other cheddar cheeses.[40] "West Country Farmhouse Cheddar" is protected outside the UK and the EU as a Geographical Indication also in China, Georgia, Iceland, Japan, Moldova, Montenegro, Norway, Serbia, Switzerland and Ukraine.[41]
Furthermore, a Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) was registered for Orkney Scottish Island Cheddar in 2013 in the EU,[4] which also applies under UK law. It is protected as a geographical indication in Iceland, Montenegro, Norway and Serbia.[41]
The state of Wisconsin produces the most cheddar cheese in the United States; other centres of production include California, Idaho, New York, Vermont, Oregon, Texas, and Oklahoma. It is sold in several varieties, namely mild, medium, sharp, extra sharp, New York style, white, and Vermont. New York–style cheddar is particularly sharp/acidic, but tends to be somewhat softer than the milder-tasting varieties. Cheddar that does not contain annatto is frequently labelled "white cheddar" or "Vermont cheddar", regardless of whether it was actually produced there.[citation needed] Vermont's three creameries produce cheddar cheeses– Cabot Creamery, which produces the 16-month-old "Private Stock Cheddar"; the Grafton Village Cheese Company; and Shelburne Farms.[36]
Some processed cheeses or "cheese foods" are called "cheddar flavoured". Examples include Easy Cheese, a cheese-food packaged in a pressurised spray can; also, as packs of square, sliced, individually-wrapped "process cheese", which is sometimes also pasteurised.[42]
Cheddar is one of several products used by the United States Department of Agriculture to track the status of America's overall dairy industry; reports are issued weekly detailing prices and production quantities.[43]
Records
U.S. PresidentAndrew Jackson once held an open house party at the White House at which he served a 1,400lb (640kg) block of cheddar. The White House is said to have smelled of cheese for weeks.[44]
A cheese of 7,000lb (3,200kg) was produced in Ingersoll, Ontario, in 1866 and exhibited in New York and Britain; it was described in the poem "Ode on the Mammoth Cheese Weighing over 7,000 Pounds"[45] by Canadian poet James McIntyre.[46]
In 1893, farmers from the town of Perth, Ontario, produced the "mammoth cheese", which weighed 22,000lb (10,000kg) for the Chicago World's Fair.[47] It was to be exhibited at the Canadian display, but the mammoth cheese fell through the floor and was placed on a reinforced concrete floor in the Agricultural Building. It received the most journalistic attention at the fair and was awarded the bronze medal.[48] A larger, Wisconsin cheese of 34,591lb (15,690kg) was made for the 1964 New York World's Fair. A cheese this size would use the equivalent of the daily milk production of 16,000 cows.[49]
Oregon members of the Federation of American Cheese-makers created the largest cheddar in 1989. The cheese weighed 56,850lb (25,790kg).[50][bettersourceneeded]
In 2012, Wisconsin cheese shop owner Edward Zahn discovered and sold a batch of unintentionally aged cheddar up to 40 years old, possibly "the oldest collection of cheese ever assembled and sold to the public". The old cheese has extensive crystallization on the outside and is "creamier and overwhelmingly sharp" on the inside.[51]
Colby, Red Leicester – cheeses similar to cheddar that also contain annatto for a sweet and nutty flavor and an orange colour
Wedginald – a round of cheddar made famous when its maturation was broadcast on the Internet
Related Research Articles
Gouda cheese is a creamy, yellow cow's milk cheese originating from the Netherlands. It is one of the most popular and produced cheeses worldwide. The name is used today as a general term for numerous similar cheeses produced in the traditional Dutch manner.
Brie is a soft cow's-milk cheese named after Brie, the French region from which it originated. It is pale in colour with a slight greyish tinge under a rind of white mould. The rind is typically eaten, with its flavour depending largely upon the ingredients used and its manufacturing environment. It is similar to Camembert, which is native to a different region of France. Brie typically contains between 60% and 75% butterfat, slightly higher than Camembert.
Caerphilly is a hard, crumbly white cheese that originated in the area around the town of Caerphilly, Wales. It is thought to have been created to provide food for the local coal miners. The Caerphilly of that period had a greater moisture content, and was made in local farms. At the start of the 20th century, competition for milk in the local area saw production decline, and Caerphilly production was gradually relocated to England.
Annatto is an orange-red condiment and food coloring derived from the seeds of the achiote tree, native to tropical parts of the Americas. It is often used to impart a yellow to red-orange color to foods, but sometimes also for its flavor and aroma. Its scent is described as "slightly peppery with a hint of nutmeg" and flavor as "slightly nutty, sweet and peppery".
Leyden, from Dutch: Leidse kaas, is a semi-hard, cumin and caraway seed flavoured cheese made in the Netherlands from cow's milk. It is made both in factories and on farms, historically in the Leiden area.
Colby is a semihard orange cheese made from cow's milk. It is named after the city of Colby, Wisconsin, USA, where it was first developed in 1885 and quickly became popular.
Cheesemaking is the craft of making cheese. The production of cheese, like many other food preservation processes, allows the nutritional and economic value of a food material, in this case milk, to be preserved in concentrated form. Cheesemaking allows the production of the cheese with diverse flavors and consistencies.
Saint-Nectaire is a French cheese made in the Auvergne region of central France.
The manufacture of Cheddar cheese includes the process of cheddaring, which makes this cheese unique. Cheddar cheese is named for the village of Cheddar in Somerset in South West England where it was originally manufactured. The manufacturing of this cheese has since spread around the world and thus the name has become generically known.
Will Studd is an international cheese specialist. Studd has been working with artisan and farmhouse cheeses for more than four decades and has traveled extensively in his vocation. During that time, he has done much to promote a greater understanding of what good cheese is all about, and championed the cause of traditional cheeses made from raw milk. After establishing a chain of delicatessens in central London during the 1970s, he migrated to Melbourne, Australia, in 1982, where he has done much to promote a greater understanding of specialist cheese as well as championing the cause of traditional cheese made from raw milk. His work has included being a distributor, retailer, media commentator, and author of a prize-winning book.
Colby-Jack, or Co-jack/Cojack, is an American marble cheese made from Colby and Monterey Jack. It is classified as semi-hard in texture and is mild due to its two-week aging process. It is generally sold in a full-moon or a half-moon shape when it is young. The flavor of Colby-Jack is mild to mellow. Colby-Jack cheese is mainly produced in the states of Wisconsin and California. It is used in various dishes or as a topping to be melted. These dishes include burgers, pasta bakes, macaroni and cheese, casseroles and so on. It is predominantly used in the United States, and is not readily available internationally.
Shropshire Blue is a cow's milk cheese made in the United Kingdom.
Joseph Harding was responsible for the introduction of modern cheese making techniques and has been described as the "father of Cheddar cheese". He is credited with having invented the "definite formula" for the production of cheddar cheese.
Little Derby is a Derby-style cheese made outside Derbyshire, similar in flavour and texture to Cheddar, but without the annatto colouring used in Derby cheese.
Beecher's Handmade Cheese is an artisan cheesemaker with retail locations in the greater Seattle area and several airports. The company was founded by Kurt Beecher Dammeier in 2003 and opened in Pike Place Market after Dammeier acquired a difficult-to-obtain storefront lease in the Market. Because Dammeier had never been a cheesemaker, he sought out the assistance of Brad Sinko, who helped run a family cheesemaking business in Oregon. A second location was opened in 2011 Manhattan's Flatiron District; this closed in October, 2022.
First Milk is a dairy co-operative in Britain which manufactures cheese, specialist dairy ingredients and whey proteins for its customers, as well as providing traceable fresh milk to a range of dairy manufacturers and food processors. As a dairy co-operative, owned and run by farmers; the area covered by its milk pool runs from the Mull of Kintyre in Scotland down through England and Wales.
The Davidstow Creamery is a manufacturing plant in Cornwall; it makes Cathedral City mature Cheddar cheese. It is the largest cheese factory in the UK, and the largest mature cheddar plant in the world. 50% of all milk in Cornwall goes to the site.
↑ Brown, Steve; Blackmon, Kate; and Cousins, Paul. Operations management: policy, practice and performance improvement. Butterworth-Heinemann, 2001, pp. 265–266.
↑ Christabel Susan Lowry Orwin, Edith Holt Whetham, "History of British Agriculture, 1846–1914", Agriculture (1964), page 145
↑ Blundel, Richard; Tregear, Angela (17 October 2006). From Artisans to "Factories": The Interpenetration of Craft and Industry in English Cheese-Making 1650–1950. Enterprise and Society.
↑ Transactions of the New-York State Agricultural Society for the Year 1864, page 232, volume 14 1865, Albany
↑ Karametsi, K. (13 August 2014). "Identification of bitter peptides in aged cheddar cheese". Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry. 62 (32): 8034–41. doi:10.1021/jf5020654. PMID25075877.
↑ "Andrew Jackson". The Presidents of the United States of America. The White House. Archived from the original on 14 May 2011. Retrieved 24 October 2008.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
Related media on Commons 
