Dutch Cheese Display with Traditional Processing Equipment, Amsterdam, (c) Likeitiz
On Auntyuta’s recent prodding about Dutch Cheese, I rummaged through my photos of our cheese encounters while exploring Amsterdam.
Ever since the Second World War when the Netherlands suffered greatly from lack of food, the government had geared their agricultural policies towards increased production of affordable food that would also provide consistent income for the Dutch farming community. And so, the thoughtful and effective planning so characteristic of this nation came into play.
Dutch Cheese Display on Traditional Process Table, Amsterdam (c) Likeitiz
Dairy farming became such a successful leading industry that eventually, there were the environmental problems and the challenges presented by surplus production. (Could milk be to the Dutch what corn is to Americans?) Hence the birth of diversification of income-generating activities such as cheese production, yoghurt, ice cream, etc. These days, export of Dutch cheese generates about €6 billion in income annually.
Lots and Lots of Dutch Cheese! (C) Likeitiz
We browsed around the cheese museums, sampled the Goudas and Edams. I was hoping to encounter some Parrano cheese, my go-to favorite back home, but I did not have much luck. I was told that Parrano is a type of Gouda, but with a sharper flavor.
Statue of a Holstein Cow Outside a Dutch Cheese Museum in Amsterdam, (c) Likeitiz
Why is Dutch cheese so good? Perhaps it’s because they start with the iconic Holstein cows that classically grace the countryside in their traditional garb of black and white. More importantly, it’s what the cows are fed, the air they breathe, the fields they look out to as they graze all day. As they say, happy cows make for great cheese!
I thought the reason they are good because “the grass is greener on the otherside”.
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No doubt the Dutch have found a winning formula when it comes to cheese. My favourite is Old Amsterdam 🙂
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that makes me hungry!
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Yum! And they’re so darn cute, too. 🙂
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I want to hug them all! Cheese….delightful cheese. Oops, my cholesterol might shoot up. Oh, well, we need to take a bite of happiness every now and then.
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Are you implying that the happy cows aren’t in fact here in California? 😉
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Hahaha! Yes, I do hear about the happy California cows but if you read Michael Pollan’s books and reports, cows, chickens, pigs, etc. are not very happy in general in the entire United States. They live very socialist lives.
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Its been ages since we visited the Netherlands, but I can still taste the cheese 🙂
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I love practically everything about the Dutch, including its cheese (regardless of price), its people and your photos. Wonderful post!
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Thank you. We enjoyed our time there.
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Good cheese but sometimes I think they over complicate them! Also quite expensive, don’t you think?
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Yes, it is. But it’s sooooo good!
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A lovely post about lovely cheese!
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Thanks!
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