Rant about cheese

Hymil.....I have done market research on cheese, so the first thing you need to know is that really low fat cheese is nasty stuff.  They put all sorts of other ingredients in it to give it decent texture.  It is still vile.

This is with conventional cheese.  So don't even try for this one with organic.

This gives you reduced fat and full fat options.  There is some decent reduced fat cheese (these are findings from American consumers).  Again, reduced fat cheese usually has extra stuff added to improve texture.   It is usually not quite as tasty as the full fat versions.

So I think the answer is quite simply that it is very difficult to make a reduced fat cheese without adding stuff to it.

Organic cheeses are usually made by specialty firms that are of course showcasing their ability to produce something "unique".  This normally does not equal mild.

One thing you can do is stay away from "aged" cheeses.  The ones relatively close to the date of production are much milder.

Good luck.  One option is to eat less fat elsewhere and enjoy the cheese you like.  Milk is much easier.

Agree with you on the eggs.  I get from the farm with roaming chickens where possible.

hymil, that's what I do -- don't eat it very often, but when I eat it, I get what I love.  Life is too short to eat stuff that I can barely stand to put in my mouth

link to article (http://www.sciencenews.org/20040124/food.asp)
Some excerpts below:

Mention omega-3 fats and most people think of fish....

However, some plants also produce omega-3 fats in abundance. The carbon-chained backbone of these plant fats tend to be shorter than the 20- and 22-carbon version typical of fish oils, so the omega-3 fats are different. On the other hand, chemical reactions in the body can elongate some plant fats to fishy lengths. Moreover, even at 18 carbons, the plant-derived alpha-linolenic-acid (ALA) omega-3 can contribute to heart health, research has shown.

In general, cheeses are fatty foods. However, Jürg H. Beer of the Canton Hospital in Baden, Switzerland, and his colleagues now report finding that cheeses produced in alpine areas around Gstaad hold a more heart-healthy mix of fats than do cheeses made from the milk of cows grazing at lower altitudes. Not only were alpine cheeses highest in omega-3 fats, such as ALA, but they also had relatively low concentrations of saturated fats and arachidonic acid, a fatty acid that can promote inflammation in the body. As an unanticipated benefit, cheeses made from the milk of grass-fed alpine cows exhibited the highest concentrations of the unusual trans fatty acid, conjugated linoleic acid, that a number of studies have linked with cancer prevention.

Beer acknowledged to Science News Online that even alpine cheeses "can't compete with fish" as a source of omega-3 fatty acids. The plant-derived omega-3s aren't as abundant nor as consistently of the preferred length as the fatty acids from fish are. However, Beer notes, for people concerned about mercury contamination of fish or who just like cheese, alpine varieties appear to be a heart-healthy choice.

Beer's team reports its new findings in the Jan. 6, 2004 Circulation.


....

Most people living in industrialized countries consume an average of 55 grams of cheese per day, the researchers say. That much Cheddar would supply 62 milligrams of ALA daily-a mere 22 percent as much as an equivalent amount of alpine cheese. In other words, just swapping one cheese for the other could increase daily ALA consumption by 210 milligrams. The Swiss researchers cite data from a 1999 Harvard study indicating that increasing the ALA content of the U.S. diet by 210 milligrams per day might cut the population's risk of fatal heart attacks by 15 to 20 percent.

Do you have any small cheesemakers near you? Maybe you can email and see if they'd consider expanding their lines (might be untapped market). I'm reducing my dairy but when I do I definitely want it to be organic.