Swedish agency cautions against cheese consumption

The official office for food and nutrition safety in Sweden (Livsmedelverket) has issued a warning with the run-up to Christmas that people should cut down on their cheese consumption. At just over 19 kg, the Swedish per capita intake of cheese nowhere approaches that of European consumption leader France with 26.3 kg or Germany (24.2 kg), but the Swedish intake has nevertheless doubled in the last 40 years.

The Livsmedelverket points out that cardiovascular disease and cheese consumption are closely associated and adds that there’s also a strong environmental argument for cutting back on cheese. Dairy production in general, it is said, is a major producer of greenhouse gases.

Needless to say, Swedish farmers lost no time in attacking the government “food safety” announcement, stressing that the Swedish dairy sector has, in fact, the best record in Europe as far as climate balance is concerned. The farmers say a more patriotic move would be for Swedes to reduce consumption of imported cheeses. Currently, imports from France, Germany, Italy and Denmark supply more than half of all cheese consumed in Sweden. The country produced 101,000 tonnes of cheese in 2012, whilst total consumption topped 182,000 tonnes.