Koskenlaskija ( Finnish for "

raftsman A raft is any flat structure for support or transportation over water. It is usually of basic design, characterized by the absence of a hull. Rafts are usually kept afloat by using any combination of buoyant materials such as wood, sealed barrel ...

") is a Finnish brand of

processed cheese Processed cheese (also known as process cheese; related terms include cheese food, prepared cheese, cheese product, and/or government cheese) is a product made from cheese mixed with an emulsifying agent (actually a calcium chelator). Additiona ...

produced by

Valio Valio Ltd () is a Finnish manufacturer of dairy products and one of the largest companies in Finland. Valio's products include cheese, powdered ingredients, butter, yogurt and milk. It is Finland's largest milk processor, producing 85% of the c ...

. Production of Koskenlaskija started in

Helsinki Helsinki () is the Capital city, capital and most populous List of cities and towns in Finland, city in Finland. It is on the shore of the Gulf of Finland and is the seat of southern Finland's Uusimaa region. About people live in the municipali ...

in 1933, and it was Valio's first brand of processed cheese. Koskenlaskija has also been produced in

Lahti Lahti (; ) is a city in Finland and the regional capital of Päijät-Häme. It is located in the Finnish Lakeland. The population of Lahti is approximately , while the Lahti sub-region, sub-region has a population of approximately . It is the mo ...

(1940-1967), in

Tampere Tampere is a city in Finland and the regional capital of Pirkanmaa. It is located in the Finnish Lakeland. The population of Tampere is approximately , while the metropolitan area has a population of approximately . It is the most populous mu ...

(1967-1989) and currently in Vaarala,

Vantaa Vantaa (; , ) is a city in Finland. It is located to the north of the capital, Helsinki, in southern Uusimaa. The population of Vantaa is approximately . It is the most populous municipality in Finland. Vantaa is part of the Helsinki Metropoli ...

. Koskenlaskija is the most popular brand of processed cheese in Finland. Koskenlaskija is a registered trademark by Valio. The cheese master Mauritz Artur Katajisto (1900-1979) received a personal award at a cheese exhibition in Helsinki in 1947 for developing Koskenlaskija.{{citation needed, date=December 2021 Throughout the decades, Koskenlaskija cheese has remained almost unchanged. The current product line also includes spreadable and sliced versions. In additional to the traditional flavour, Koskenlaskija is now available in a more intense flavour and in spiced flavours (cold-smoked

reindeer The reindeer or caribou (''Rangifer tarandus'') is a species of deer with circumpolar distribution, native to Arctic, subarctic, tundra, taiga, boreal, and mountainous regions of Northern Europe, Siberia, and North America. It is the only re ...

, green pepper,

bell pepper The bell pepper (also known as sweet pepper, paprika, pepper, capsicum or, in some parts of the US midwest, mango) is the fruit of plants in the Grossum Group of the species ''Capsicum annuum''. Cultivars of the plant produce fruits in diff ...

and herb-garlic). The packaging of the product has remained mostly unchanged, with the label featuring a

log driver Log driving is a means of moving logs (sawn tree trunks) from a forest to sawmills and pulp mills downstream using the current of a river. It was the main transportation method of the early logging industry in Europe and North America. History ...

navigating down a rapid. The original 250 g package was designed by Veikko Emil Sipinen, and the appearance has been only slightly modernised. In 2015 Koskenlaskija was chosen as the third most popular brand of cheese in Finland in an annual brand survey conducted by '' Markkinointi & Mainonta'' and Taloustutkimus. The most popular cheese was Aura—another Valio cheese—and the second most popular cheese was Oltermanni.

Wartime

Extensive production of block processed cheese was started in Finland during wartime. 500 g packages of Koskenlaskija cheese were used as part of the five-day field rations of frontline patrols during the

Continuation War The Continuation War, also known as the Second Soviet–Finnish War, was a conflict fought by Finland and Nazi Germany against the Soviet Union during World War II. It began with a Finnish declaration of war on 25 June 1941 and ended on 19 ...

In the Syväri forest after a battle: We, a bunch of new recruits born in 1923 and drafted to the frontline had ended up in a difficult situation, when the Russians were making a huge spring attack in Syväri from Homoravitsa. It was 1942. After a hard battle, we survivors were dealt whatever food was available and so it was a package of Koskenlaskija cheese for each man. We probably had not eaten for a whole day and we were hungry... This is associated with my first war experience and a package of Koskenlaskija cheese so strongly, that whenever I see a package of Koskenlaskija cheese at a shop shelf - I relive that period. After all, since I survived that trip, I had to go out and buy a package of Koskenlaskija cheese and taste it to see if it had the same flavour as back then. And yes, it had.Valio archive, "Memories of Koskenlaskija" contest 1993.

References

Cow's-milk cheeses Finnish cheeses