Turrialba cheese facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Turrialba cheese |
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Block and slices of Turrialba cheese
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| Country of origin |  Costa Rica |
| Region | Turrialba canton |
| Town | Santa Cruz district |
| Source of milk | Cows milk |
| Named after | Lua error in Module:Wikidata at line 70: attempt to index field 'wikibase' (a nil value). |
Turrialba cheese is a special type of cheese from Costa Rica. It comes from the Turrialba area in the Cartago Province. This cheese is made from cow's milk. Since 2012, it has a special status called "origin protected." This means only cheese made in the Turrialba region using traditional methods can be called Turrialba cheese.
Contents
How Turrialba Cheese Began
The story of Turrialba cheese started in the 1870s. A family from Spain, led by Lucas Vargas, moved to Costa Rica. They settled in a place called Santa Cruz in Turrialba. The Vargas family brought their cheese-making recipes from their home in La Mancha, Spain. They began making cheese using these old family traditions.
Shipping Cheese to Cities
By the 1890s, it became easier to move goods around Costa Rica. Trains started running between Turrialba and the capital city, San José. The Vargas family could now send their cheese to San José and Cartago. They packed the cheese in wooden boxes for the journey. This helped the cheese become popular in other parts of the country.
Growing the Cheese Business
In 1930, a man named Florentino Castro bought a large farm called Hacienda El Volcán. He was known for growing coffee. Mr. Castro was the first person in Costa Rica to produce and package cheese, butter, and sour cream with special labels. This made it easier to sell these products all over the country.
Turrialba Cheese Goes Global
The 1950s were an exciting time for Turrialba cheese. For the first time, this delicious cheese was sent to other countries. It was exported to Chile and England. This showed how much the cheese business had grown from its humble beginnings. It was even exported alongside Costa Rican coffee.
See also
In Spanish: Queso Turrialba para niños
