Why No One Do Real Cheese In Thailand

[thalassa2006]

hi

just wonder why no one is doing real cheese in Thailand (brie camembert chedhar etc etc) and could it be done on a small scale here (professionally)

let said 2000 liter of milk per month need to buy raw milk and maybe some goat milk too

just thinking of starting a small scale business around bangkok or samui or phuket

i will have a artisan diploma from New Zealand and can make a dozen of fresh cheese at a small cost we talking around a 1000 baht here if i make it it will cost less than half just need some help from you guy , let me know must be a reason why no one doing it and could you think it will be a good hit with the hotel or restaurant or the farang living here

Eric

Edited April 9, 2010 by thalassa2006

[Thongkorn]

Because the average Thai is to busy trying to make a living , Without prating about with cheese. Thais do not eat much dairy products.

[balo]

I miss my goat cheese , so please let me know when your business is ready.

[jdk]

go to villa, foodland, or the tops at chitlom or the supermarket at paragon or any of the specialty cheese shops on soi 23 into soi 31 and various other sois around 24 and 26 and you will find some cheese. there are also very good meats shops such as butcherie (sp?) and the like which sell french, spanish, portuguese cured meats. all these places serve foreigners so they are in the same districts.

virtually all thai's hate cheese. the only ones who would even consider a ripe camembert must have spent a decade abroad.

bad idea, in my opinion. you would be better off making coffeemate. there is a bigger market for the stuff

[Spoonman]

My local Makro (Pattaya) has a fairly large display of various cheese's at the deli, dont know which actual ones as im not a "cheese" man but there is a quiet a variety.

[davee58]

And decent freshly baked French style Baguettes as well,

(not soft squishy bread)

Fresh Baguettes and cheese are widely available in Cambodia and Vietnam, but not Thailand??

The first thing I do on arriving in Phnom Penh is to go to the bakers and then Lucky supermarket for my baguette and some (imported French) cheese.

However as a commercial venture in Thailand, it is not part of the culture so how many customers would you have??

If you did find a commercial success with the Thai population it would soon be cloned

[stevehaigh]

if you are serious about this please PM me. i have a friend who has a milk factory in Cha-am and i can connect you with him. also, he or i can help with location for factory, permits and food grade stainless equipment.

i've often thought about making cheese here but know absolutely nothing about it, but might be interested in being a partner.

steve

[BWPattaya]

First: buy a calculator!

What would such a business cost to set up? Factory, proper equipment (I don't just mean the items for making cheese, I mean the food grade tables, refrigerators, etc.) food production licences from the FDA, work permit, how many Thai staff could you manage with as a minimum (got to meet work permit requirements).

Now, add the costs of raw materials, distribution and delivery costs, advertising. What type of clients are you looking for? Basically it will be the foreign population. Thais are like the Chinese when it comes to cheese. They eat some very smelly food but they won't touch the secretions of an animal that has been allowed to ferment, i.e. cheese.

Having written all of that, I love all types of cheese but rarely buy it myself, just too exopensive for what it is. That is another problem for you. To make it a viable business proposition you will have to charge more than people will pay.

Good luck.

[sceadugenga]

The amount of cheese available in supermarkets here indicates that there is a market.

A local product would have to compete price wise with the most popular ranges which I would consider to be the prepacked Mainland and the "cut from the block" cheeses imported from Australia.

These are nowhere near the best, but certainly the cheapest and bought for that reason.

Come up with something tasty around 200B a kilo and it will sell, be assured.

[jazzbo]

Indigenous cheeses in tropical regions tend to the non-aged 'queso fresco' of Mexico and paneers of India.. all the cheeses you mention are cold weather cheeses and you will have one hel_l of an electic bill running humidity controlled refrigerators for the months that it takes to ripen the cheeses mentioned.

That said:

Minor Cheese (Khorat) produces a range of cheeses and cheese blends including mozzarella, cheddar, string cheese, parmesan, mascarpone, cream cheese and sour cream. With a maximum output of over 1,500 tonnes of cheese per year, Minor Cheese is a key supplier to not only the various restaurant operations of its parent, The Minor Food Group, but a major supplier in the Thai and regional food service sector.

http://www.minorinternational.com/internat...ut_products.asp

[mark45y]

Over the years reading Thaivisa I have read of numerous people who make cheese here. Also you can google "cheese made in Thailand." I know that is complicated but do able. You will find a number of companies who make all different cheeses in Thailand. Home made cheese co and Health house cheese to name a couple. I buy NZ cheese here as it is not too expensive.

[IMA_FARANG]

Why is Cheese of any type not a big item in Thai farming. It's because:

1. Most Thais stilll don't eat Cheese or dairy products for that matter.

2. The market may be growing slowly, but it would still be an expat or farang market.

3. Some of the soft or semi-soft type of cheeses that you mention are, frankly, just a smelly mess to many Thais.

4. The incidence of lactose intolerence...inability to digest milk and cheese is not the same in all racial groups. It is highest among Asians. A lot of Thais (as well as other Asians) get that "bloated" feeling from cheese or dairy products. It gives them gas.

And for those reasons above Cheese never has been a big item in Thailand.

[thalassa2006]

hello everyone

thanks for all your answer, i will let you know more about me and answer some of yours question

i am not looking to make a fortune just a living like a deli with (fresh cheese sausage ham and jam)

i am married and working here already ...

BWP pattaya thanks for your note and all of you

what i target is farang and hotel and restaurant no Thai.... not a big scale business but quality on my home made produce

was thinking samui because is where i live and have so many hotel and restaurant i have a land there and a home (my wife name)

i am also a chef so this will help...

to set up my business on a small scale from home it will cost me 1.500,000 million

thank you all again for good or negative comment it all help keep them coming even the bad one

Eric

[kurnell]

Personally I hope you do it. I would love to have good quality, locally produced cheese. Saying there is no market for it is ridiculous.

[thalassa2006]

Indigenous cheeses in tropical regions tend to the non-aged 'queso fresco' of Mexico and paneers of India.. all the cheeses you mention are cold weather cheeses and you will have one hel_l of an electic bill running humidity controlled refrigerators for the months that it takes to ripen the cheeses mentioned.

That said:

Minor Cheese (Khorat) produces a range of cheeses and cheese blends including mozzarella, cheddar, string cheese, parmesan, mascarpone, cream cheese and sour cream. With a maximum output of over 1,500 tonnes of cheese per year, Minor Cheese is a key supplier to not only the various restaurant operations of its parent, The Minor Food Group, but a major supplier in the Thai and regional food service sector.

http://www.minorinternational.com/internat...ut_products.asp

Thanks for all this info it will really help me ..Eric

[thalassa2006]

Personally I hope you do it. I would love to have good quality, locally produced cheese. Saying there is no market for it is ridiculous.

Thanks for your support i will do it ....Eric

[davee58]

I have just read the April 2010 edition of "Going Places" the Malaysia Airlines inflight magazine.

There is an interesting article on page 19 - "Who made my cheese" that details two expats, similar to yourself, who have set up cheese making operations in Langkawi, and Sabah, (both Malaysia).

It would certainly be of interest if you are able to get hold of a copy, sorry I left mine on the plane and cannot find an online version.

However I googled and here are two links to the Langkawi operation, there are loads of other links if you search.

Friendly Farms on Blog

Bernama News

[bina]

there are a few posters (have disappeared but who knows, may show up again) who do cheeses/and or have milk cow/goat herds but as others have mentioned, mention or show cheese to a thai, forget it. i used to milk my own goats and make the fresh cheese,(thai) husband wouldnt touch with a ten foot pole;he only tried cottage cheese for the first time yesterday and he's lived here (israel-- a dairy eating country)for 6+ yrs. and he didnt like it.

anyhow...try the search function for cheese and also the word goat (u will get my old posts also but we discussed cheese a lot about two years ago......); theres also 'captainbob' in laos also, i think he was doing cheese also....try searching for his name here too.

bina

israel

[thalassa2006]

there are a few posters (have disappeared but who knows, may show up again) who do cheeses/and or have milk cow/goat herds but as others have mentioned, mention or show cheese to a thai, forget it. i used to milk my own goats and make the fresh cheese,(thai) husband wouldnt touch with a ten foot pole;he only tried cottage cheese for the first time yesterday and he's lived here (israel-- a dairy eating country)for 6+ yrs. and he didnt like it.

anyhow...try the search function for cheese and also the word goat (u will get my old posts also but we discussed cheese a lot about two years ago......); theres also 'captainbob' in laos also, i think he was doing cheese also....try searching for his name here too.

bina

israel

Thank you Bina i will look at it i just want to make a small living out of it and do good quality

keep you posted

Eric