Wis. cheese factory to drop ‘gruyere’ from name

MONROE, Wis. — A cheese producer in Monroe will drop the word “gruyere” (groo-YAYR’) from one of its cheese names, giving in to pressure from its Swiss parent company and the Swiss Gruyere industry.

Emmi Roth USA says its Grand Cru Gruyere will be known simply as Grand Cru.

Company executive Steve Millard says the change reflects the fact that the cheese isn’t made in the Gruyere region of Switzerland.

A Monroe Times report says Switzerland grants legal protection to the names of regional foods, but the U.S. doesn’t. The Swiss want the name protected, in part to prevent counterfeiting.

Jim Natzke is an executive at the Monroe factory. He says Grand Cru Gruyere and Emmi’s Swiss gruyere are from the same family of cheeses, but acknowledges they don’t taste the same