Following “Kalix löjrom” and “Allåkerbär från Norrland”, northern Sweden has now received a third product approved with a Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) within the EU. It is the Coffee cheese.

Coffee cheese is a fresh cheese made from milk from reindeer, goat or cow that is put in pieces in hot coffee and then fished out and consumed together with the coffee.

The production of Coffee cheese may only take place in northernmost Sweden, encompassing the provinces of Norrbotten, Västerbotten, Lapland, Jämtland, Härjedalen and Ångermanland, and the milk raw material must also come from the same region. “This is where the cultural traditions surrounding Coffee cheese exist - and the cheese gets its unique taste thanks to the lush pasture that the many hours of daylight give rise to,” emphasizes Agnes Otterbech, dairyman at Mathantverket Vuollerim who took the initiative for the application a number of years ago.

The application, which was recently granted by the European Commission, submitted by the Swedish Artisan Dairy Association, which brings together around a hundred dairy farmers from Klågerup in the south to Vuollerim in the north. However, the protected designation can be used by anyone who meets the product specification, whether they are members of the association or not. Currently, Kaffeost is produced at six different dairies in the region from Trehörningsjö in Ångermanland to Vuollerim in Norrbotten.

“The demand for Kaffeost is high in northern Sweden and there is room for more producers”, says Kerstin Johansson, chairwoman of Swedish Farm Dairy Association, who is also pleased with the protected designation of origin.

The system of products with a protected designation of origin is well known in southern Europe, while it is not yet as well known in northern Europe, including Sweden and our neighboring countries. But the basket of Swedish products with protected designations has been filled up at a good pace in recent years, and thus the awareness and appreciation of such products will certainly also increase.

“The value of a product with a protected designation lies largely in the fact that you as a consumer know what you are getting. The raw materials are clearly defined, as is the geographical origin of the raw materials and where the processing is carried out. Buying such products therefore means that you can be sure that you are supporting the local economy,” says Martin Ragnar, who assisted the Swedish Farm Dairy Association in applying for the protection that has now been granted.

Kaffeost is the twelfth Swedish product to receive a protected designation of origin in the EU. At the same time, it is the second cheese in the Nordic region to win this honorable quality seal, after Wrångebäcksost, which received its protection a couple of years ago.

Unusual way of consuming cheese

The noticeably unsalted Kaffeost sometimes has a dried surface, sometimes it is oven-baked and sometimes smoked. The unusual way of consuming the cheese – after small cubes have been heated in hot boiled coffee – makes Kaffeost an exotic and exciting product that our time is longing for.

“The good news is that Kaffeost is here at home in northern Sweden – ready to be discovered by all southerners and a lot of northerners too. And it has a long and exciting cultural history right here,” says Anna-Karin Gidlund, dairywoman at Gide Get in Trehörningsjö in Ångermanland.

The hope is now that Kaffeost will become an obvious signature in many catering and hospitality contexts in the region. In October, there will be the first time that the Swedish Championship will compete in a special class for Kaffeost alone, when Eldrimner organizes the Swedish Championship in Artisan food production in Skellefteå.