“For a product to be awarded the prestigious title of Dairy Product of the Year in a competition of this nature is a long and difficult journey, and the dream of every dairy technologist,” says chief judge and international dairy expert Kobus Mulder in a press release.

“Not only is it an extraordinary performance, but also a proof of sustained good manufacturing knowledge and practices, as well as quality control.”

Mulder says St Francis of Ashisi’s soft, melt-in-the-mouth texture and creamy taste deserves a place on every cheeseboard. The cheese is made using the lactic acid coagulation method, which is well known in France. The cheese is covered in a white edible fungus and vegetable ash, which helps to curb the lactic acid development in the cheese."