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- Argentine cheese is by far the most produced dairy product in the country, making Argentina the second largest cheese producer in Latin America and among the top 10 cheese-producing countries in the world. In addition, Argentina is the Latin American country that consumes the most cheese, with 12 kilos per capita per year. Production is mainly centered in the provinces of Córdoba, Santa Fe and Buenos Aires, in the Pampas region of the central and east-central parts of the country. In the 18th century—during the colonial era—Argentina was the place of origin of the Tafí del Valle and Goya cheeses which, along with Chanco from Chile, constitute the oldest cheeses created in the Southern Cone region of South America. Tafí del Valle is the oldest cheese of Argentina and originated in what is now the city of the same name in Tucumán, traditionally attributed to Jesuit missionaries, while Goya was created in what is now the city of the same name in Corrientes. These cheeses are one of the few typical Latin American food products with nearly three hundred years of history, along with tequila from Mexico, pisco from Peru and Chile, and chicha, among others. Modern Argentine cheesemaking culture emerged as a result of the major European immigration wave that took place during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, which turned Buenos Aires into a "melting pot" and a great cosmopolitan city, while radically changing the customs of both the working and upper classes. These immigrants, especially those from Italy, introduced the cheesemaking technologies of their home countries and attempted to recreate their cheeses. Popular cheeses of Argentine origin include Reggianito, Sardo, Cremoso, Provoleta and Pategrás. (en)
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