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Fermentation Atlas

Cheese from Netherlands

Edam Holland PGIEdam Holland

Edam Holland is a semi-hard Dutch cow cheese, shaped as a ball with flat top and bottom, or as a loaf or block. Pasteurised milk standardised to 40–44% fat in dry matter is set with rennet and mesophilic starters at about 30 °C, and the curd is washed, pressed and brined. It must ripen in air on wooden boards for at least 28 days at 12 °C or more; ripening in foil is not allowed. Made in 7 steps over 32 days. The longest step, ripen naturally on wooden boards, takes at least 28 days (RVO (Netherlands Enterprise Agency) 2026) and runs at at least 12 °C (RVO (Netherlands Enterprise Agency) 2026). Lactococcus lactis subsp. lactis and subsp. cremoris, Leuconostoc spp. and Lc. lactis biovar diacetylactis does most of the fermenting.

Key numbers
Main stepat least 28 daysSet[rvo-edam]Ripen naturally on wooden boards
Temperatureat least 12 °CSet[rvo-edam]Ripen naturally on wooden boards
Fully documentedCheese32 daysPGI (EU); Noord-Hollandse Edammer is a separate PDOFamily: Washed-curd cheese family (Gouda as template)More washed-curd cheesesMore from Netherlands

Recipe

No fixed amounts recordedThe specification fixes limits, not a recipe. Types range from baby Edam (up to 1.5 kg) to blocks of up to 20 kg.
Cow milk from Dutch dairy farms · Fat-to-protein ratio set so the cheese has 40–44% fat in dry matter; pasteurised at the dairy[rvo-edam]
Mesophilic starter cultures · L-type or LD-type mixed cultures; not genetically modified[rvo-edam]
Rennet · Calf rennet, bovine pepsin or microbial rennet; none made with recombinant DNA[rvo-edam]
Salt · As a brine bath[rvo-edam]
Rind coating (optional) · A coating that lets some water vapour through[rvo-edam]
Starter: mesophilic L- or LD-type mixed cultures, optionally with Lactobacillus or Streptococcus thermophilus adjuncts

Total time across the recorded steps: 32 days

Start
Drag the bar or press Play
up to 6 °C

What changes: Starting material: cow milk from Dutch farms, cooled straight after milking

Step 1 of 7
Cool the farm milk
Time
up to 4 days
Set
Temperature
up to 6 °C
Set
Salt
None given
Acidity
Not documented
Which microbes the steps name, step by step
Lactococcus lactis
Leuconostoc spp.
Lc. lactis
Flavour
Not documented
Texture
Not documented
Colour
Not documented

Microbes at work in this step

Not documented for this step.

Method

Measured measured in a studySet fixed by a specification or tested recipeReported one source reports itTypical a general value, not sourced for this fermentUnconfirmed not yet checked against a source

What makes this one different

Edam Holland is set at 40–44% fat in dry matter, lower than Gouda Holland (48–52%), and is traditionally ball-shaped where Gouda is a flat wheel. Unlike generic Edam, it must ripen in air on wooden boards, never in plastic foil.

Milk
Dutch farm milk standardised to 40–44% fat in dry matter, not a skim-milk cheese
Setting
About 30 °C with calf rennet, bovine pepsin or microbial rennet
Ripening
Natural ripening at 12 °C or more for at least 28 days (baby at least 21 days)
Size
Baby up to 1.5 kg; bol, Bros and Stip 1.5–2.5 kg; kleine brood 2–3 kg; grote brood 4–5 kg; blok up to 20 kg. Fat in dry matter 40–44% for all types

Related ferments

Variants

  • Edam Holland (baby)Up to 1.5 kg; ripened at least 21 days
  • Edam Holland (Bros)Very many small holes; firm and crumbly
  • Edam Holland (blok and brood)Block or loaf shapes for slicing, up to 20 kg

Safety

The milk is pasteurised at 72 °C or more for 15 seconds, and the specification requires no detectable phosphatase and no coliforms in 0.1 ml of the treated milk. Nitrite in the cheese is capped at 2 mg/kg.

History and sources

Every number is labelled with how it is known. How this atlas is made

Edam was a market and port town where round, tall cheeses were traded; customs lists of 1581 already name "klootkaas" (ball cheese). Prints of Alkmaar market in 1675 and 1725 still show flatter cheeses, so the full ball shape probably spread in the 18th century. The balls were coloured red to keep better, which Émile Zola described in 1873.

  1. [rvo-edam] RVO (Netherlands Enterprise Agency), Productdossier Beschermde Geografische Aanduiding Edam Holland (2026-09)spec
  2. [rvo-gouda] RVO (Netherlands Enterprise Agency), Productdossier Beschermde Geografische Aanduiding Gouda Holland (2026-09), for the Gouda fat rangespec
  3. [eamb-edam-am] NZO, Application for approval of a minor amendment, PGI-NL-00329-AM02 (25 September 2018), approved by the European Commission, eAmbrosia attachment 64030spec