French authorities have temporarily relaxed strict production rules for some of the country's most famous traditional cheeses as prolonged drought and successive heatwaves wither pastures across France.
Producers of Comté, Beaufort, and Abondance cheeses will be permitted to supplement livestock diets with additional feed and grain sourced from outside their home regions after high temperatures dried out local grazing fields.
Comté, a hard cheese made from raw cow's milk in the Jura mountains of eastern France, is the nation's most popular traditional cheese, with production exceeding 62,000 tonnes in 2025. Like Beaufort and Abondance, Comté carries Protected Designation of Origin (AOP) certification, a European regulatory classification that enforces rigid standards governing animal feed, grazing practices, and geographic boundaries.
The AOP status, known internationally as Protected Designation of Origin (PDO), is designed to preserve historic culinary traditions and regional economic identity. Under normal operating conditions, certified dairy farmers must feed their herds on local pasture grass and regionally produced hay, prohibiting the import of outside feed to maintain the distinctive flavor profile associated with the local landscape.
However, extreme summer weather altered conditions across the country. Drought conditions affected 95 percent of mainland France in July, converting green grazing lands into dry and degraded meadows.
Emergency Feed Changes for Traditional Cheeses
To prevent dairy cattle from starving or suffering severe malnutrition during the feed shortage, French authorities approved temporary changes allowing farmers to bring in external feed supplies. The National Institute of Origin and Quality (INAO), the state agency responsible for overseeing and enforcing rules for protected agricultural goods, is reviewing similar temporary exemptions for several other traditional cheeses, including Reblochon, Cantal, Bleu d'Auvergne, and Fourme d'Ambert.
The INAO regulates hundreds of traditional French food products, ensuring that regional specialties comply with centuries-old farming rules. Reblochon is a soft, washed-rind cheese from the Savoy Alps, while Cantal, Bleu d'Auvergne, and Fourme d'Ambert are historic cheeses crafted in the central volcanic region of Auvergne. Relaxing feed standards for these products represents an unusual step for French agricultural regulators, who typically penalize non-compliance with strict production protocols.
The impact of the drought extends well beyond the three cheeses granted immediate relief. Approximately 70 percent of producers of Salers, another AOP-certified cow's milk cheese, were forced to halt production entirely during the summer, according to French newspaper La Montagne, cited by the Guardian. At the same time, producers of Roquefort sheep's milk cheese have requested temporary rule modifications regarding pasture grazing because their pastures have sustained severe damage.
Salers cheese, produced exclusively in the mountainous Massif Central region of south-central France, is inherently seasonal and can only be manufactured when cows feed on lush summer grass. Roquefort, one of the world's most recognized blue cheeses, is made from sheep's milk in the south of France and aged inside natural limestone caves. The inability of sheep and cows to graze on damaged fields threatens the continuation of these ancient cheesemaking practices.
Widespread Damage Across French Agriculture
Official data published by the French Ministry of Agriculture highlights the severe scale of the pasture depletion. As of August 10, the growth rate of permanent grassland across France was one-third below the historical average recorded between 1989 and 2018, leaving animal feed availability severely compromised in almost every region.
Agriculture Minister Annie Genevard is expected to meet with local authorities next week to evaluate emergency intervention measures and financial support for struggling farmers.
The crisis is also causing substantial losses in other key sectors of French agriculture. The national potato growers' association UNPT warned of an expected 23 percent decline in this year's potato harvest following five consecutive heatwaves and exceptionally low rainfall. In the northern region of Hauts-de-France, a major hub for potato cultivation, farmers reported that harvested potatoes are significantly smaller than usual, creating severe supply concerns for commercial processors of french fries, crisps, and secondary potato products.
Hauts-de-France, located along the border with Belgium, accounts for the majority of France's industrial potato production. The UNPT, known formally as the Union Nationale des Producteurs de Pommes de Terre, represents commercial potato growers across the country.
Concerns have also been raised regarding this year's harvest of apples used in cider production. In the wine sector, grape harvesting has already begun earlier than usual due to accelerated ripening from high temperatures, leaving the total final volume of wine uncertain. As France relies heavily on its traditional cheeses and regional produce to sustain both its rural economy and national cultural identity, agricultural producers face growing disruption from climate change.
