Behold, the power and allure of French cheese

Attendees at an event held last Friday at the aT Center in Yangjae-dong, southern Seoul, sample various French cheeses. Provided by the organizer

France is well known for producing some of the best wines on the planet.

So it’s no wonder the country has an equally lofty reputation when it comes to cheese, a ubiquitous sidekick to vino.

In an effort to turn more Koreans on to the delights of cheese produced in France, the French Ministry for Food, Agriculture and Fisheries (MAAP) and the country’s embassy in Korea organized a tasting and informational event last Friday.

“Cheese, which has a history and tradition that dates back thousands of years, is a big part of the French way of life,” Thomas Pavie, director of the French food agency FranceAgriMer, told reporters after the event, which was held at the aT Center in Yangjae-dong, southern Seoul and drew more than 100 attendees.

The seminar focused on French cheeses and highlighted the country’s food safety policies and regulations regarding food exports. It also featured presentations by officials and experts, who provided an overview of the Korean cheese market and drew comparisons between French cheese and Korean kimchi, both of which are fermented foods.

“About 92 percent of French people consume cheese at least once a day,” Pavie said. “And in France, the older you get, the more you know about cheese and the more likely you are to enjoy eating it.”

Cheese has long played a central role in the country’s lifestyle. Even Charles de Gaulle, a general and the first president of the Fifth Republic in France, once expressed the difficulty of governing a multifaceted country “that produces 324 different kinds of cheese.”

Now, several decades later, France produces over 1,000 different kinds of cheese.

“The cheese we produce is categorized into seven groups ranging from white cheese to blue cheese,” Pavie said. “Each group has its own traits deeply related to climate and the geographical and geological features of the place where it is produced.”

France is the biggest cheese producer in Europe with an annual production of 1.4 million tons. It exports about 600,000 kilograms (1.3 million pounds) of cheese each year to 150 countries around the world, including Korea. France is now aiming to increase its cheese exports to Korea, where it believes there is a bigger market for the future.

Unlike in the 1990s, when it was mainly used in Korea for pizza, cheese is now featured in a variety of dishes and consumption of it is increasing rapidly. France ranks as the fourth-largest cheese exporter in Korea after Australia, New Zealand and the United States.

“We are more interested in introducing a variety of our cheese to Korea rather than aimlessly increasing exports to the country,” said Marie-Frederique Parant, head of the export team in the general food policy bureau of MAAP. “So we plan to bring in cheese that is unique to France so that Korean people can meet with a variety of French cheese.

“During a visit to Tokyo the other day I was amazed by the diverse collection of French cheeses displayed in a local store. I hope that Korean consumers will also have such an opportunity to enjoy French cheeses as much as the Japanese do.”

Korea, however, applies stricter regulations regarding certain bacteria in fermented food than France, which is one reason that blue cheese and some other varieties have yet to be formally introduced here, French officials said.

“We are currently in talks with the Korean government to relax regulations, as we’re trying to convince them that our food safety regulations for imports are safe,” Parant said. “I also think the [tasting and informational] event, which drew such a large crowd, is a reflection of Korea’s interest in French cheese. We will continue our efforts and host more events like this to promote a mutual understanding regarding cheese exports and imports between France and Korea.”

By Park Sun-young [spark0320@joongang.co.kr]