These Cheese Maps Make Us Want To Eat Even More Cheese

Another day, another opportunity to learn more about cheese, and eat massive quantities of it. This is how HuffPost Taste sees the world. Whether it's goat cheese, brie, blue or anything else -- seriously, we're even talking Kraft Singles -- we want cheese of all stripes and colors, on its own, in a recipe or even with dessert. There's always room for cheese.

Thanks to a trio of maps put out by Esri, a California-based mapping company, we've just added some more knowledge to our cheese banks. We spotted the maps on Smithsonian Magazine and haven't stopped thinking about cheese since. (But that's nothing new.)

The first map displays which types of cheese are most commonly produced around the world. Most cheese produced in Europe comes from cow milk, for example, while yak milk is the dominant source for cheese in the Himalayas. In the northwest corner of Serbia, cheese is made with donkey milk.

The second map illustrates the countries around the world that produce the most cheese. The United States towers over everyone else when it comes to cheese production, making 11.7 billion pounds a year. Europe is full of cheese-makers, as is New Zealand, but no one holds a candle to the good ol' USA.

The third and final map shows the country that consumes the most cheese per capita. While the U.S. may produce the most cheese, it's not the highest consumer per capita. That award goes to France, bien sûr. While that may not surprise you, the next highest consumer per capita might throw you for a loop. Check out the three maps below and get to know cheese a little better than you already do. If you don't want a big block of cheddar or melty grilled cheese after this, you're stronger than we are.

[H/t Smithosonian Mag]

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