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Feta ( el, φέτα, ) is a Greek brined white
cheese Cheese is a dairy product produced in wide ranges of flavors, textures, and forms by coagulation of the milk protein casein. It comprises proteins and fat from milk, usually the milk of cows, buffalo, goats, or sheep. During production, ...
made from sheep's milk or from a mixture of sheep and goat's milk. It is soft, with small or no holes, a compact touch, few cuts, and no skin. Crumbly with a slightly grainy texture, it is formed into large blocks and
aged Ageing ( BE) or aging ( AE) is the process of becoming older. The term refers mainly to humans, many other animals, and fungi, whereas for example, bacteria, perennial plants and some simple animals are potentially biologically immortal. In ...
in brine. Its flavor is tangy and salty, ranging from mild to sharp. Feta is used as a table cheese, in salads such as Greek salad, and in pastries, notably the
phyllo Filo or phyllo is a very thin unleavened dough used for making pastries such as baklava and börek in Middle Eastern and Balkan cuisines. Filo-based pastries are made by layering many sheets of filo brushed with oil or butter; the pastry is th ...
-based Greek dishes '' spanakopita'' "spinach pie" and ''
tyropita Tiropita or tyropita (Greek: τυρóπιτα, "cheese-pie") is a Greek pastry made with layers of buttered phyllo and filled with a cheese-egg mixture. It is served either in an individual-size free-form wrapped shape, or as a larger pie that is ...
'' "cheese pie". It is often served with olive oil or olives, and sprinkled with aromatic herbs such as
oregano Oregano (, ; ''Origanum vulgare'') is a species of flowering plant in the mint family Lamiaceae. It was native to the Mediterranean region, but widely naturalised elsewhere in the temperate Northern Hemisphere. Oregano is a woody perennial pl ...
. It can also be served cooked (often grilled), as part of a sandwich, in
omelette In cuisine, an omelette (also spelled omelet) is a dish made from beaten eggs, fried with butter or oil in a frying pan (without stirring as in scrambled egg). It is quite common for the omelette to be folded around fillings such as chives, ...
s, and many other dishes. Since 2002, feta has been a protected designation of origin in the European Union.
EU legislation European Union law is a system of rules operating within the member states of the European Union (EU). Since the founding of the European Coal and Steel Community following World War II, the EU has developed the aim to "promote peace, its valu ...
and similar legislation in 25 other countries limits the name ''feta'' to cheeses produced in the traditional way in mainland Greece and
Lesbos Prefecture Lesbos Prefecture ( el, Νομός Λέσβου) was one of the prefectures of Greece. It comprised three main islands: Lesbos itself, Lemnos, and the smaller island of Agios Efstratios. Its capital was the town of Mytilene, on Lesbos. In 2011 t ...
, which are made from sheep's milk, or from a mixture of sheep's and up to 30% of goat's milk from the same area. Similar white brined cheeses are made traditionally in the Balkans, around the Black Sea, in West Asia, and more recently elsewhere. Outside the EU, the name ''feta'' is often used generically for these cheeses.


Generic term and production outside Greece

For many consumers, the word "feta" is a generic term for a white, crumbly cheese aged in brine. Production of the cheese first began in the Eastern Mediterranean and around the Black Sea. Over time, production expanded to countries including Denmark, France, Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States, often partly or wholly of cow's milk, and they are (or were) sometimes also called ''feta''.


Geographical Indication

Since 2002, feta has been a Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) product within the European Union. According to the relevant EU legislation (applicable within the EU and Northern Ireland), as well as similar UK legislation only those cheeses produced in a traditional way in particular areas of Greece, which are made from sheep's milk, or from a mixture of sheep's and up to 30% of goat's milk from the same area, can be called feta. Also in several other countries the term feta has since been protected. An overview is shown in the table below.


Description

The EU PDO for feta requires a maximum moisture of 56%, a minimum fat content in dry matter of 43%, and a pH that usually ranges from 4.4 to 4.6. Production of the EU PDO feta is traditionally categorized into firm and soft varieties. The firm variety is tangier and considered higher in quality. The soft variety is almost soft enough to be spreadable, mostly used in pies and sold at a cheaper price. Slicing feta produces some amount of ''trímma'', "crumble", which is also used for pies (not being sellable, ''trímma'' is usually given away for free upon request). High-quality feta should have a creamy texture when sampled, and aromas of ewe's milk, butter, and yoghurt. In the mouth it is tangy, slightly salty, and mildly sour, with a spicy finish that recalls pepper and ginger, as well as a hint of sweetness. According to the specification of the Geographical Indication, the biodiversity of the land coupled with the special breeds of sheep and goats used for milk is what gives feta cheese a specific aroma and flavor.


Production

Traditionally (and legally within the EU and other territories where it is protected), feta is produced using only whole sheep's milk, or a blend of sheep's and goat's milk (with a maximum of 30% goat's milk). The milk may be pasteurized or not, but most producers now use pasteurized milk. If pasteurized milk is used, a starter culture of micro-organisms is added to replace those naturally present in raw milk which are killed in pasteurization. These organisms are required for acidity and flavour development. When the pasteurized milk has cooled to approximately ,.
rennet Rennet () is a complex set of enzymes produced in the stomachs of ruminant mammals. Chymosin, its key component, is a protease enzyme that curdles the casein in milk. In addition to chymosin, rennet contains other enzymes, such as pepsin and ...
is added and the
casein Casein ( , from Latin ''caseus'' "cheese") is a family of related phosphoproteins ( αS1, aS2, β, κ) that are commonly found in mammalian milk, comprising about 80% of the proteins in cow's milk and between 20% and 60% of the proteins in human ...
is left to coagulate. The compacted curds are then chopped up and placed in a special mould or a cloth bag that allows the whey to drain. After several hours, the curd is firm enough to cut up and salt; salinity will eventually reach approximately 3%, when the salted curds are placed (depending on the producer and the area of Greece) in metal vessels or wooden barrels and allowed to infuse for several days. After the dry-salting of the cheese is complete, aging or maturation in
brine Brine is a high-concentration solution of salt (NaCl) in water (H2O). In diverse contexts, ''brine'' may refer to the salt solutions ranging from about 3.5% (a typical concentration of seawater, on the lower end of that of solutions used for b ...
(a 7% salt in water solution) takes several weeks at room temperature and a further minimum of 2 months in a refrigerated high-humidity environment—as before, either in wooden barrels or metal vessels, depending on the producer (the more traditional barrel aging is said to impart a unique flavour). The containers are then shipped to supermarkets where the cheese is cut and sold directly from the container; alternatively blocks of standardized weight are packaged in sealed plastic cups with some brine. Feta dries relatively quickly even when refrigerated; if stored for longer than a week, it should be kept in brine or lightly salted milk.


History

Cheese made from sheep and goat milk has been common in the
Eastern Mediterranean Eastern Mediterranean is a loose definition of the eastern approximate half, or third, of the Mediterranean Sea, often defined as the countries around the Levantine Sea. It typically embraces all of that sea's coastal zones, referring to commun ...
since ancient times.. In
Bronze Age The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second prin ...
Canaan Canaan (; Phoenician: 𐤊𐤍𐤏𐤍 – ; he, כְּנַעַן – , in pausa – ; grc-bib, Χανααν – ;The current scholarly edition of the Greek Old Testament spells the word without any accents, cf. Septuaginta : id est Vetus Te ...
, cheese was perhaps among the salted foods shipped by sea in ceramic jars and so rennet-coagulated white cheeses similar to feta may have been shipped in brine, but there is no direct evidence for this. In Greece, the earliest documented reference to cheese production dates back to the 8th century BC and the technology used to make cheese from sheep-goat milk is similar to the technology used by Greek shepherds today to produce feta... In the '' Odyssey'', Homer describes how
Polyphemus Polyphemus (; grc-gre, Πολύφημος, Polyphēmos, ; la, Polyphēmus ) is the one-eyed giant son of Poseidon and Thoosa in Greek mythology, one of the Cyclopes described in Homer's ''Odyssey''. His name means "abounding in songs and leg ...
makes cheese and dry-stores it in wicker racks, though he says nothing about brining, resulting perhaps, according to Paul S. Kindstedt, in a rinded cheese similar to modern pecorino and caprino rather than feta. On the other hand, E. M. Antifantakis and G. Moatsou state that Polyphemus' cheese was "undoubtedly the ancestor of modern Feta".. Origins aside, cheese produced from sheep-goat milk was a common food in
ancient Greece Ancient Greece ( el, Ἑλλάς, Hellás) was a northeastern Mediterranean civilization, existing from the Greek Dark Ages of the 12th–9th centuries BC to the end of classical antiquity ( AD 600), that comprised a loose collection of cult ...
and an integral component of later Greek gastronomy. The first unambiguous documentation of preserving cheese in brine appears in
Cato the Elder Marcus Porcius Cato (; 234–149 BC), also known as Cato the Censor ( la, Censorius), the Elder and the Wise, was a Roman soldier, senator, and historian known for his conservatism and opposition to Hellenization. He was the first to write histo ...
's '' De Agri Cultura'' (2nd century BCE) though the practice was surely much older.. It is also described in the 10th-century ''
Geoponica The ''Geoponica'' or ''Geoponika'' ( el, Γεωπονικά) is a twenty-book collection of agricultural lore, compiled during the 10th century in Constantinople for the Byzantine emperor Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus. The Greek word ''Geoponica ...
''. Feta cheese, specifically, is recorded by Psellos in the 11th century under the name ''prósphatos'' (Greek πρόσφατος 'recent, fresh'), and was produced by
Cretans Crete ( el, Κρήτη, translit=, Modern: , Ancient: ) is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the 88th largest island in the world and the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after Sicily, Sardinia, Cyprus, and ...
. In the late 15th century, an
Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional It ...
visitor to Candia, Pietro Casola, describes the marketing of feta, as well as its storage in brine.. Feta cheese, along with milk and sheep meat, is the principal source of income for shepherds in northwestern Greece. The Greek word ''feta'' (φέτα) comes from the Italian ''fetta'' 'slice', which in turn is derived from the Latin ''offa'' 'morsel, piece'. The word ''feta'' became widespread as a name for the cheese only in the 19th century, probably referring to the cheese being cut to pack it in barrels..


Effect of Certification as a Geographical Indication

Prior to Greece's pursuit of a PDO for its feta, there was long-standing production out of Greece in three member states: Germany, Denmark and France, and in certain countries (e.g. Denmark) feta was perceived as a generic term, while it was perceived as a designation of origin in others (e.g. Greece), with the centre of production and consumption taking place in Greece. Greece first requested the registration of Feta as a designation of origin in the EU in 1994, which was approved in 1996 by commission regulation (EC) No 1107/96 The decision was appealed to the
Court of Justice of the European Union The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) (french: Cour de justice de l'Union européenne or "''CJUE''"; Latin: Curia) is the judicial branch of the European Union (EU). Seated in the Kirchberg quarter of Luxembourg City, Luxembourg ...
(CJEU) by Denmark, France and Germany, which annulled the decision as the Commission did not evaluate sufficiently whether or not Feta had become a generic term. After that decision, the European Commission reevaluated registering Feta as a PDO, taking into account production in other EU countries and re-registered feta as a PDO in Commission Regulation (EC) No 1829/2002. This decision was appealed again at CJEU by Denmark and Germany. In 2005, the CJEU upheld the Commission Regulation. It indicated that indeed the term was generic in some EU countries and that production also took place outside Greece, but that on the other hand the geographical region in Greece was well defined and that even non-Greek producers often appealed to the status of Feta as a Greek product through the choice of packaging. The European Commission gave other nations five years to find a new name for their feta cheese or stop production. Because of the decision by the European Union, Danish dairy company
Arla Foods , industry = Dairy , predecessor = ArlaMD Foods , founded = , founder = , location_city = Viby , location_country = Denmark , area_served = Worldwide , key_people = Peder Tub ...
changed the name of its white cheese products to ''Apetina'', which is also the name of an Arla food brand established in 1991. When needed to describe an imitation feta, names such as "salad cheese" and "Greek-style cheese" are used. The EU included Feta in several Associations Agreements, Free Trade Agreements and agreements on the recognition of Geographical Indications, which led to the expansion of protection of the term Feta. Exporters from the EU to foreign markets outside the territories covered by these agreements, are not subject to the European Commission rules. As such, the non-Greek EU cheese sold abroad is often labeled as feta. In 2013, an agreement was reached with Canada (
CETA The Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) is a free-trade agreement between Canada and the European Union and its member states. It has been provisionally applied, thus removing 98% of the preexisting tariffs between the two parts. ...
) in which Canadian feta manufacturers retained their rights to continue producing feta while new entrants to the market would label the product "feta-style/type cheese". In other markets such as the United States, Australia, New Zealand and elsewhere, full generic usage of the term "feta" continues. Some cheeses from the EU were renamed. In 2007, the British cheese Yorkshire Feta was renamed to Fine Fettle Yorkshire.


Nutrition

Like many dairy products, feta has significant amounts of
calcium Calcium is a chemical element with the symbol Ca and atomic number 20. As an alkaline earth metal, calcium is a reactive metal that forms a dark oxide-nitride layer when exposed to air. Its physical and chemical properties are most similar ...
and phosphorus; however, feta is higher in water and thus lower in fat and calories than aged cheeses like Parmigiano-Reggiano or Cheddar. The cheese may contain beneficial
probiotics Probiotics are live microorganisms promoted with claims that they provide health benefits when consumed, generally by improving or restoring the gut microbiota. Probiotics are considered generally safe to consume, but may cause bacteria-host in ...
. Feta, as a sheep dairy product, contains up to 1.9% conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), which is about 0.8% of its fat content. Feta cheese is very high in salt, at over 400 mg sodium per 100 calories.


Similar cheeses

Similar cheeses can be found in other countries, such as: *
Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares la ...
(''djathë i bardhë'' or ''djathë i Gjirokastrës'') *
Armenia Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ''Ox ...
(''Չանախ'' chanakh - cheese made in a ''chan'', a type of crock) *
Azerbaijan Azerbaijan (, ; az, Azərbaycan ), officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, , also sometimes officially called the Azerbaijan Republic is a transcontinental country located at the boundary of Eastern Europe and Western Asia. It is a part of t ...
(''ağ pendir'', ) *
Bosnia Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of south and southeast Europe, located in the Balkans. Bosnia and H ...
(Travnički/ Vlašićki sir, lit. "cheese from Vlašić/
Travnik Travnik is a town and a municipality in Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is the administrative center of Central Bosnia Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is situated in central Bosnia and Herzegovina, west of Sarajevo. As of 20 ...
") *
Bulgaria Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Maced ...
(бяло сирене, , lit. "white cheese") * Canada (''feta style cheese'', or simply ''feta'' for those companies producing the cheese prior to October 2013) * Czech Republic (''balkánský sýr'', lit. "Balkan cheese") * Egypt ('' domiati'') * Finland (salaattijuusto, "salad cheese") *
Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...
(ყველი, ''kveli'', lit. "cheese") * Germany (''Schafskäse'', "sheep cheese") * Hungary (''juhturo'') * Iran (
Lighvan cheese Lighvan ( fa, لیقوان) is a sour, hole filled brined curd cheese traditionally made from sheep's milk in Liqvan, a village in East Azerbaijan, Iran. Processing Lighvan cheese, one of the most popular Iranian traditional cheeses, is a sta ...
; ''panīr-e līghvān'') * Israel (''gvina bulgarit'', lit. "Bulgarian cheese") * Italy (''casu 'e fitta'' Sardinia) * Lebanon (, lit. "Bulgarian cheese") * North Macedonia (сирење, ''
sirenje Sirene ( sq, djathë i bardhë; bg, сирене ; mk, сирење; sr, сир, italics=no/) also known as "white brine sirene" ( bg, бяло саламурено сирене, links=no) is a type of brined cheese made in the Balkans (Sou ...
'') *
Palestine __NOTOC__ Palestine may refer to: * State of Palestine, a state in Western Asia * Palestine (region), a geographic region in Western Asia * Palestinian territories, territories occupied by Israel since 1967, namely the West Bank (including East J ...
and Jordan ( Nabulsi cheese; , and ''
Akkawi Akkawi cheese ( ar, جبنة عكاوي, jubna ʿakkāwī, also Akawi, Akawieh and Ackawi) is a white brine cheese named after the city of Akka (Acre, present-day Israel). Etymology Akkawi cheese is named after the port city of Akka ( ar, ع� ...
''; ) * Romania ('' brânză telemea'') *
Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eight ...
(брынза, '' brynza'') * Serbia (сир, ''
sir ''Sir'' is a formal honorific address in English for men, derived from Sire in the High Middle Ages. Both are derived from the old French "Sieur" (Lord), brought to England by the French-speaking Normans, and which now exist in French only as ...
'' as a common name; сирење, ''
sirenje Sirene ( sq, djathë i bardhë; bg, сирене ; mk, сирење; sr, сир, italics=no/) also known as "white brine sirene" ( bg, бяло саламурено сирене, links=no) is a type of brined cheese made in the Balkans (Sou ...
'' in South, including Kosovo Serb; and ''brinza'' in north and east Serbia within Slovak and Aromanian populations) * Slovakia (''
bryndza Bryndza (from Romanian ''brânză'' cheese) is a sheep milk cheese made across much of East-Central Europe, primarily in or around the Carpathian Mountains of Slovakia, Ukraine, Romania and southern Poland. Bryndza cheese is creamy white in a ...
'' and ''Balkánsky syr'', lit. "Balkan cheese") * Spain (''Queso de Burgos'', lit. "Burgos cheese") * Sudan ('' gibna beyda'', lit. "white cheese") * Turkey (''
beyaz peynir Beyaz peynir (meaning "white cheese" in Turkish) is a brine cheese produced from unpasteurized sheep, cow or goat milk. The cheese has a slightly grainy appearance and is similar to lighvan, feta, sirene and other Balkan white cheeses. Vege ...
'', lit. "white cheese") * Ukraine (бринза, '' brynza'') * United Kingdom (''Salad cheese'')


See also

* *


Citations


General and cited references

* * * * * * * * * * * * *


Further reading

*


External links


International Feta Day
{{Authority control Cheeses with designation of origin protected in the European Union Greek cheeses Greek products with protected designation of origin Goat's-milk cheeses Mixed-milk cheeses Sheep's-milk cheeses