Most beloved cheese in America

Americans don’t need a special day to celebrate their love of cheese, but we have one anyway. National Cheese Day is observed annually on June 4.

The average person consumes nearly 42 pounds of cheese per year, based on the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s latest data. That number, from 2022, was an all-time high.

Despite the always-growing list of vegan cheese alternatives, domestic per capita consumption of cheese was up 17.1% in 2022, the USDA said.

So why do we love cheese so much?

“I think it’s because of the creamy, the richness and the depth of flavor that’s in cheese,” Chef Raymond Hook, cheesemonger and owner of Capella Cheese, said on Scripps News’ “Morning Rush.”

Hook said he believes the most popular cheese in the U.S. is cheddar, followed by blue cheese and Camembert or brie — both soft, cow’s milk cheeses that originated in France but have very different flavor profiles.

The best sellers for his company include a cave-aged Comté reserve cheese from France described on Capella Cheese’s website as “herbaceous and fruity, kissed with deep, heavy cream,” as well as burrata and mozzarella that is house-made at the Atlanta shop.

Hooks brought Scripps News anchors a variety of cheeses to try, including a goat cheddar made in Somerset, England; an organic manchego from a family farm in Spain made exclusively with milk from black Manchega sheep; and the current World Champion Cheese, Hornbacher from Switzerland.

According to Statista, a global data platform, countries in the European Union produce the most cheese worldwide, followed by the U.S., Russia, and Brazil.

The top cheese-producing states include Wisconsin (shocker), California, Idaho, New Mexico, and New York.

While cheese is considered a great source of protein and calcium, the high content of saturated fat and salt could lead to high cholesterol and high blood pressure, so the American Heart Association recommends limiting your dairy indulgence.