Say Cheese! – It’s National Cheese Lover’s Day

Cheese lovers, today (January 20) is your day. Based on statistics, it would appear almost everyone in the US loves cheese. Both the production and consumption of the dairy delight is astronomical.

According to Statista, the US produces over 5.5 million tons of cheese every year, second only to western Europe who's countries produce 7.7 million tons per year.

While not all of the cheese produced in the US is eaten by Americans, the amount of cheese we eat means every person in the country could feasibly consume 15 pounds of cheese per year.

Where does all that cheese come from? It's probably no surprise Wisconsin makes the most cheese, but takes a lot more than 'America's Dairyland' to keep up with America's love of cheese.

Here are the top five cheese producing states in the US.

1. Wisconsin - 2.8 billion pounds
2. California - 2.3 billion pounds
3. Idaho - 871 million pounds
4. New York - 751 million pounds
5. New Mexico - 661 million pounds

Italian varieties, such as Mozzarella and Parmesan, are the most favored cheeses in the US followed closely by American.