There is no cheese quite like Swiss cheese. The skill of the cheese maker and the best milk result in cheeses of the highest quality.

The history of Swiss cheese

Cheese has been made throughout the Alpine regions for millennia. Swiss cheese was already mentioned in the first century by the Roman historian Pliny the Elder, who called it Caseus Helveticus - the "cheese of the Helvetians", one of the tribes living in Switzerland at the time. Throughout the middle ages, cheese was an important source of income for the mountain farmers, and many different varieties were produced. For example, the Schabziger cheese of Glarus was first mentioned in public records in the year 1000 as a tithe given to the monastery of Säckingen, whilst the first references to Gruyere cheese date back to 1115, and to Emmental and Sbrinz in 1200. The first Swiss co-operative cheese factories were opened in the 19th Century during the industrial revolution. In the 20th Century, the Federal Swiss Cheese Union was founded to support the producers of the major Swiss cheeses after the difficult economic years of the First World War. Since then, ten Swiss cheeses have received the AOC seal. Today, Swiss cheese is renowned throughout the world as a natural product of the highest quality.

Different varieties of Swiss cheese

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