Production of Salers cheese has been halted in France due to a prolonged summer drought, The Guardian reported. A prolonged dry spell, combined with unprecedented heat waves in Europe this summer, means there is not enough grass to feed the cows whose milo is used to create the traditional delicacy. Salers is a semi-hard unpasteurized cow’s cheese that has been made in the region of the same name in central France for 2,000 years. It bears France’s AOC seal of approval, meaning it is unique to this small region. France’s famously strict regulations state that Salers must come only from the milk of local cows fed at least 75 percent grass from mountain pastures in the summer. Most of the 76 farmers whose milk goes into Salers production lament that their once green pastures are now dry and yellowed from lack of water. “There is nothing else to eat,” farmer Laurent Roux told France Bleu radio station. “The ground is so dry that it looks like ash in places. It’s dust.” Salers cheese is considered a delicacy with strict quality standards.THIERRY ZOCCOLAN/AFP via Getty Images It is the first time in history that cheese production has ever been interrupted.
