An American judge ruled on Friday that cheese that is not made in the Swiss region of Gruyère can be called that. Cheese producers from Switzerland and France, where a French variant of gruyère is made, had filed a case in the American state of Virginia.
“Regardless of the production location, cheese in the United States has been labeled and sold as Gruyère for decades,” the judge said. According to the court, Americans therefore think of Gruyère as a type of cheese and not the place where it comes from.
American dairy companies see the ruling as a victory. Their cheese can now continue to be called Gruyère, just like cheese from the Netherlands, Germany and Austria, for example. The Swiss and French cheese producers who had brought the case say they will not let it go.
The American Food and Drug Administration does set conditions for gruyère. For example, the cheese must have small holes and mature for more than ninety days.
In Europe, strict rules apply to the naming of regional products. For example, champagne may only be called that if it comes from the French region of the same name. The same applies to Parma ham and Gouda cheese, among other things.
