The European Commission appreciated the Polish product. It was included in the register of traditional specialties guaranteed

The European Union appreciated another Polish product. The name “Smoked cottage cheese” was registered on September 6 this year. by the European Commission as a Traditional Specialty Guaranteed in the register of Protected Designations of Origin (PDO), Protected Geographical Indications (PGI) and Traditional Specialties Guaranteed (TSG). Thus, it is the 46th Polish product from the agricultural and food category to be recognized as unique, and the sixth in the cheese category.

Polish cheese appreciated by the European Commission

The registered names of the cheeses also include: Bryndza Podhalańska, oscypek, Wielkopolska fried cheese, redykołka and koryciński cheese. The notification indicated that not only does the term “cottage cheese” itself have no equivalent in the languages ​​of Western European countries, but it also emphasizes that traditional Polish cottage cheese is not known there, as we read in the release.

Smoked cottage cheese is a special type of unripened cottage cheese. It is the smoking process using smoking carts, which is not commonly practiced in cottage cheese produced in Poland, that gives it its special character. The uniqueness of the product is additionally emphasized by the salting process by rubbing the cottage cheese with salt or immersing it in brine, which is also not a common practice. In the past, this type of treatment was the most popular method of extending the shelf life of cottage cheese. Nowadays, in the era of sterilization, preservation and freezing of products, the traditional smoking process gives a unique and characteristic aroma and taste.

Producers of smoked cottage cheese from Poland will be able to mark their products as protected if they meet several conditions:

• cheese is made from cow’s milk,
• it will have the shape of a small cylinder-shaped block with a diameter of approx. 10 cm and a mass of 250-300 grams or a cuboid with base dimensions of approx. 12 x 8 cm and a unit weight of approx. 200 g.,
• its color will be from cream-yellow to slightly brown,
• will be subjected to a natural smoking process using smoke from deciduous trees (beech and alder or beech and alder smoking chips),
• may contain additives such as garlic salt, garlic, pepper, paprika, dill, black cumin or cumin,
• The shelf life will be 30 days from the production date.

What are protected products?

A Traditional Specialty Guaranteed (TSG) is a product or food whose composition, method of production or processing corresponds to traditional practice for that product or has been made from raw materials or ingredients that are traditionally used. Unlike Protected Designations of Origin and Protected Geographical Indications, products that are Guaranteed Traditional Specialties can be produced throughout Poland, provided they meet the specifications.

“Specific character” means the characteristic properties of the production process which clearly distinguish the product from other similar articles in the same category. However, the term “traditional” means that it is documented as being in use on the domestic market for a period that allows it to be passed down from generation to generation. Provided that this period is to be at least 30 years.