Sponsored: The U.S. cheese industry helps to educate the foodservice sector about USA Cheese offerings in the region, whilst highlighting their excellence to chefs and customers alike.
Cheesemaking in the United States began with the arrival of European settlers to the country, which harks back to the 16th century. They brought with them dairy farming traditions and cheesemaking skills, thus forming a cheese-producing community in the country.
Today, the United States produces a quarter of the world’s cheese output. We see a country with one of the largest cheesemaking communities that still retains quality at the forefront of all USA Cheese. America is also the land of specialty cheesemaking where hundreds of artisans across the country craft some of the world’s best artisanal cheeses.
The U.S. cheese industry’s international success is reflected in the performance of USA Cheese at the 2019 World Cheese Awards in Bergamo, Italy. U.S. cheesemaker Rogue Creamery’s Rogue River Blue was crowned the World Champion Cheese, the first American recipient of this honour. The excellence of USA Cheeses was further confirmed at the 2020 World Championship Cheese Contest, where the United States went up against well-reputed cheesemaking countries and out of the 393 awards distributed during the competition, Cheeses from the USA earned 265 of them.
These two competitions are just a peek into the remarkable success of the U.S. cheese industry over the years. The USA produces over 1,000 types of cheese, inspired by international cultures and the country’s own innovation. While the United States excels at producing globally recognized cheeses such as cheddar, parmesan and mozzarella; the country is also known for the creation of many American Originals such as Monterey Jack, Pepper Jack and Colby Jack. Another unique fact about USA Cheeses is that they are not bound by tradition and hence, some of the best cheeses are those that combine old and new techniques to create an ever-expanding portfolio of types and varieties such as Baby Swiss, Lacy Swiss and Blind Swiss. This unparalleled selection of Cheeses from the USA features cheeses to suit every chef’s palate or home cook’s needs.
Raising Awareness
Through education and communication, the USA Cheese Guild® offers knowledge of USA Cheese, American dairy farmers and the entire U.S. cheese community in the UAE. Through promotions, the Guild informs chefs, importers, and consumers about the craftsmanship, quality, innovation, variety, and versatility of USA Cheeses.
A cornerstone of the USA Cheese Guild’s efforts in the region is the USA Cheese Specialist® Certification Program. With this program, culinary students and professionals, as well as supply chain specialists and retail staff can learn more about Cheese from the USA, how to use it or sell it and most of all, discover an industry they probably knew little about.
In Dubai, the Guild has partnered with one of the leading culinary vocational education training centres, the International Centre for Culinary Arts (ICCA Dubai), to offer the USA Cheese Specialist® Certification Program. Since the launch of the program in 2018, 239 students have begun the program, with 100 students completing the entire certification program to date, earning the designation of Certified USA Cheese Specialist®.
The Certification Program has since expanded to Taiwan, Korea and Japan, with plans to expand to five other countries this year.
