Which Country is the Largest Producer of Cheese in the World?

Cheese is one of the most loved dairy products across the globe. Whether it is melted on a pizza, spread on a sandwich, or eaten straight from the block, cheese is part of billions of meals every single day. But have you ever thought about which country actually makes the most cheese in the world? The answer is more interesting than you might think. Let us break it down properly.

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Which Bloc Produces the Most Cheese in the World?

There's one thing you need to know before we mention any countries. The European Union makes up 47% of the world's cheese production, totaling an estimated 10.79 million metric tons (mt) in 2025/2026, according to official data from the USDA's Foreign Agricultural Service.

However, the European Union is not a single country. It is a political bloc of 27 countries as well as an economic union. 

Which Country is the Largest Producer of Cheese in the World?

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If countries and blocs are separated then two answers become simple depending on your perspective. 

The U.S. is the world's largest producer of cheese in the world. The United States produces about 6.6 million metric tons of cheese that is 29% of the world production, according to data from USDA Foreign Agricultural Service.

Top 5 Cheese Producing Countries in the World

Here is the official data directly from the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service for 2025/2026:

Source: USDA Foreign Agricultural Service

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Which State Produces the Most Cheese in the USA?

The state of Wisconsin produces the highest amount of cheese totalling to 25.2% of the total cheese volume of the United States. 

Wisconsin alone would be the fourth largest cheese producer in the world after the rest of the countries. California is in second place among the US states, followed by Idaho, New Mexico and New York. 

Why Does the USA Lead As the Largest Cheese Producer? 

Dairy farming is a gigantic well-structured industry in the U.S. Many thousand dairy farms are found in the state of Wisconsin, California, and Idaho, continuously producing milk in large quantities.

Since 1992, U.S. cheese production has reached new all-time highs, and it continues to rise. Such steady increase resulted from high domestic demand, high technical expertise and large-scale dairy farming.

Among the regional blocs, the European Union is the largest cheese producer accounting for 47% of world production. However, since the EU comprises 27 diverse countries and not one single country, then the United States is the largest cheese-producing country in the world. 

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