Best cheese at the World Dairy Innovation Awards

This year’s awards hosted a range of exotic new blends and flavours in the cheese category once again. Sartori’s citrus-ginger BellaVitano has a blend of spices, including ginger, onion, garlic and red bell pepper; while Dairy Farmers of America’s Queso Fresco Mexicana and Queso Fresco Panela Fresca introduced Hispanic flavours, which can be used in a variety of dishes as well as on their own in multiple serving options.

Healthy alternatives stand out, with Arla Food Ingredients’ Nutrilac soft cheese solution and Fonterra’s reduced fat Noble Cheddar providing low fat content for cheeses, without compromising the soft and sensory experience and creamy texture.

Best cheese:

Versatility is of growing importance in the cheese category, with DeJong Cheese’s cheese crumbles for cooking and salads in three flavours using a secret recipe that ensures the pieces do not stick together and Arla Foods’ Castello Burger Blue slices give an instant gourmet twist to burgers. Kourellas’ Feta Bites introduce a new way of serving feta with the round, smooth snack bites of original Greek feta cheese – available plain or in several different combinations using herbs – while Murat Bey offers a visually engaging snacking option with the braided Burgu cheese. Following the same trend, Good Culture’s blueberry-açaí-chia cottage cheese comes in an on-the-go pot and offers a healthy mixture of seeds, fruits and dairy.

Premium and speciality cheeses stand out in using traditional and artisanal techniques, such as the South Caernarfon Creameries’ Welsh Slate Cavern Aged Cheddar, aged with a traditional ageing process 500ft underground and delivered in a sleek pack design; Arla Foods’ Castello Aged Gouda, matured for 18 months, has a harmonious and full-bodied taste with slight salty notes; Litehouse Foods’ vintage Simply Artisan Reserve Double Crème Gorgonzola is aged for 100 days and hand-crafted; Arla Foods’ Castello Aged Havarti is aged for 12 months and contains two types of crystals that create an intriguing crunch; and Meiji’s Hokkaido Tokachi Premium Sliced Cheese raises the bar in the sliced cheese market in Japan.