State's Cheese Production Reaches 2.2 Billion Pounds
(February 5, 2007) The state's cheese producers again kept production at a record pace in the past year, posting total cheese production of 2.2 billion pounds, according to the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA). The 2,207,105,000 pounds of cheese that California produced in 2006 was 3.3 percent higher than the 2,137,546,000 pounds produced in 2005, which also set a record.
Cheese production in California has nearly doubled over the past decade, growing from 1.17 billion pounds in 1997, as the state rapidly approaches the leadership position for cheese production nationwide.
California milk production also reached a record high in 2006, totaling 38.8 billion pounds, a 3.4 percent increase over 2005, according to the CDFA. California is the nation's leading milk producer and nearly half of California's milk supply goes to cheese production. (It takes 10 pounds of milk to make one pound of cheese.)
"California's dairy industry is one of the largest agricultural forces in the state and in recent years has become a major supplier of dairy products nationwide," said Stan G. Andre, Chief Executive Officer, California Milk Advisory Board (CMAB). "In 2004 alone, California's dairy business generated $47.4 billion in economic activity and created more than 434,000 full-time jobs in California," he said, citing a recent economic impact study on the California dairy industry.
Today, California has several of the world's largest cheese plants and produces nearly one out of every four pounds of cheese made in the U.S.
The CMAB has mounted a successful effort in recent years to promote California cheese outside of the state. Real California Cheese is now available across the country through many of the country's leading supermarket and grocery chains under the Real California Cheese seal, which was developed by the CMAB as a way for consumers to recognize cheese made in California with California cow's milk. More recently, the CMAB has begun promoting California butter and ice cream outside of the state.