Eating a lot of cheese is a well-known Dutch daily habit, but did you know you could win global titles for it?
Well, the Netherlands just did! New research by Mintel lists the top 10 cheese-loving nations across the world — and the Dutch have won the crown. 👑
Crunching the nom-bers
So how exactly do you quantify a nation’s love of cheese? The research considered factors such as cheese imports, production and general interest.
The stats were gathered using the UN Comtrade, Cheese.com (yes, it’s a real site), and Google search data.
Each country then received a score out of 100 — and the Netherlands really sliced up the competition, beating the likes of France and even the US! 🧀
So, who else did the Netherlands beat? Check out the rankings below:
| Country | Score (out of 100) |
|---|---|
| Netherlands | 76.8 |
| France | 39.3 |
| Belgium | 39.1 |
| USA | 31.7 |
| Austria | 30.7 |
The Dutch go above and brie-yond
As you can see, the Dutch won by a long shot, and the whopping score of 76.8 is even more impressive when you consider the relatively small Dutch population of 17 million.
This doesn’t stop the Netherlands from scoring big elsewhere in the cheese leagues — they also made the most Google searches for ‘cheese’ per capita in the whole world.
READ MORE | Let’s talk cheesy: cheese tourism in the Netherlands
And once they’re done staring at cheese on their computer screens, it’s time for the Dutch to import some. The research found that per Dutchie, an average of more than 3.1kg and $14 worth of cheese is imported annually.
However, the biggest importer globally is actually France, spending $374 million on cheese every year. A good investment, we believe!
READ MORE | Dutch cheese varieties: the comprehensive (and cheesy) guide
We already knew the Dutch loved cheese so edam much. Now they have the official title to prove it.
What’s your favourite Dutch cheese? Tell us in the comments below!