Welcome

to the 4.th meeting of the European Network of Farmhouse Cheesemakers and the European Congress on “Food Safety in Small Cheese-farmhouses”

Dear Cheesemakers!

This year we celebrate the fourth annual meeting of the European Network of Farmhouse Cheesemakers in Zafra (Extremadura, Spain). This year we will hold a European Conference that will bring together producers, cheese technicians and health inspectors from European countries with a common goal: to spare knowledge and initiate collaborations to combine small dairies with food safety.

Health and Food Quality are among the top priorities of European consumers. Repeated agro-inclustry downturns have caused a lack of consumer confidence in foods and is stimulating the growth of local production in more agro-industrialised countries.

This trend is important and sometimes comes face-to-face with paradoxical obstacles such as inconsistent application of regulations designed to preserve the health of consumers. The excessive application of health standards has led to the abandonment of small-scale dairies unable to make the Investments needed to respond to health requirements.

To prevent further abandonment and preserve traditional European cheese production, has been launched this European Network of Farmhouse Cheesemakers.

During the meeting in Zafra, in addition to the conference devoted to “food safety in small cheese dairies,” there will be time for workgroup meetings, visits to cheese dairies, and also… times for tasting cheeses coming from all over Europe.

We give our warmest welcome to the members of the Network, as well as to new people interested in being part of it. This time we also welcome health inspectors across Europe interested and / or specialized in small-scale production.

With my best regards,

Juan Gabriel Santiago
Country Cheese Producer
President of ARTEQUEX (Asociaciön de Queserias Artesanas de Campe de Extremadura)