Dutch soil was and is pre-eminetly suitable for cattle-breeding and their remains have been found in the northern part of the Netherlands dating back to 1600 B.C. In Fiesland in the north of The Netherlands, pots and vessels were discovered which indicate that as early as two centuries B.C., cheese was being made there. An extensive trade has existed since the Middle Ages.

Around the year 1100 Dutch bargemen paid their tolls in cheese at Koblenz in Germany. In bills of the city of Rotterdam dating back to 1426, mention is made of the profession of `caescoper' (cheesemonger). In 1266 the City of Haarlem obtained the right to hold a dairy market. In 1303, Leyden was next, Oudewater in 1326 and Alkmaar in 1365.

For centuries cheese making was a craft usually undertaken by women. Nowadays over 98% of all Dutch cheese is produced in modern creameries.

Towards the turn of the 19th century a veritable revolution took place in dairying. Cheese making progressed to the creamery, where production was more efficient and a consistent could be maintained. `New Life' was the first creamery established in 1883 in 't Zand, south of Den Helder in North Holland. In 1886 the first Co-operative was set up in Warga (Friesland). At the beginning of this century there was as many as 106 creameries collectively accountable for almost half of the Dutch cheese production. This revolution was caused by the development of new techniques for milk processing and in particular the invention of the seperator to skim the cream off milk for butter-making. However, cheese-making too was soon mechanized. Nowadays over 98% of all Dutch cheese is produced by an ever-decreasing number of creameries.

Cheese markets
There are five cheese markets operating in the Netherlands. Woerden is a fully functional modern commercial cheese market. Four, Alkmaar, Gouda, Edam, Hoorn, are reproductions of traditional merchant cheese markets as operated in the Middle Ages. These shows are today surrounded by stalls selling all things traditional to the Dutch culture, including cheese. In the summer of 2007 a new cheese market will open in the historic town of Hoorn, on the Roode Steen square.

Alkmaar
This cheese market is open every Friday morning between 10 and 12 from the first Friday in April until the first Friday in September. Market activities are explained in Dutch, German, English and sometimes Japanese. There are four teams (vemen) of cheese-porters (kaasdragers), who can be recognised by their differently coloured straw hats: red, blue, green and yellow. Two porters bring cheese on stretchers to the weighing house (Waag) - a typical stretcher "weighs in" at about 160 kilograms. Merchants sample the cheeses and decide on a price using a barter system called handjeklap, literally clapping hands.

Edam
Edam is possibly the most popular of the markets described here, and as the name suggests, this market sells primarily Edam cheese. The cheeses are still brought to the market by horse-drawn carriages and boat. The market opens in July and August on Wednesday mornings from 10:30 until 12:30.

Hoorn
Since 2007, the cheese market has taken place every Thursday morning between 12:30 and 13:45 and, between 28 June and 20 September, every Thursday evening between 21:00 and 22:15. Two porters bring cheese on stretchers to the weighing house (Waag). There are live commentaries of the whole process in both Dutch and English.

Gouda
Cheese has been traded on the Goudse kaasmarkt for more than three centuries from mid-June until August. Every Thursday morning between 10 and 12:30, farmers from the region gather to have their cheese weighed, tasted and priced. The Gouda cheese market is surrounded by many exhibitions of authentic Dutch professions, from cheese production to clog making and buttermilk preparation.

Woerden
The only production cheese market in existence in the Netherlands has little of the spectacle or pageantry of the three other cheese markets. For more than 100 years, every Wednesday morning starting around 9, there is an active trade between the kaasboeren (cheese farmers) and the marktmeester (market foreman), when prices are determined for the different types of cheese. The cheeses for sale are boerenkazen (farmers' cheeses) which are considered by cheese aficionados to be more authentic and have a much better taste than factory-made cheese.

Historic Cheese Market Woerden
Annually, in August, on the last Wednesday of the school summer holidays (for the central Netherlands), a historic cheese market is held, where the farmers and farmer's wives dress up in historical costumes, and re-enact traditional a traditional cheese market.