Generality
The leerdammer is a Dutch cheese made from pasteurized cow's milk, with a semi-raw texture, with a maturation time of around 3-12 months.
The leerdammer is produced exclusively by the “Groupe Bel” and the name constitutes a trademark of “Bel Leerdammer BV”.
It is a Dutch cheese typical of the Schoonrewoerd region, more precisely of the municipality of Leerdam which, as can be easily deduced, has helped to define its name. A second production center is located in Dalfsen, in the eastern province of Overijssel.
The leerdammer was developed in 1970 by Cees Boer Kooper, owner of a small dairy in Schoonrewoerd (since 1914), and by Bastiaan Baars, who ran a cheese shop near the aforementioned dairy. The intention of the two was to obtain a food that could compete with Gouda and Edam. The leerdammer was first launched in 1977 and was a great success.
The leerdammer is a product defined as “without profit”, that is, the sale of which does not cause any gain for the investors but allows it to continue its distribution. The profit margin on the current price is around 10%, while it should normally be 25%.
Nutritional Characteristics
The leerdammer is a rather caloric derivative of milk, whose energy is supplied by lipids and proteins, while carbohydrates are absent.
The peptides contained in the leerdammer are of high biological value and the fatty acids mainly of the saturated type. It does not contain fiber and the cholesterol content should be quite high.
As for the mineral salts, the leerdammer should be characterized by a considerable amount of calcium, phosphorus and sodium. With regard to vitamins, on the other hand, it is reasonable to think that the levels of riboflavin (vitamin B2), cobalamin (vitamin B12, thanks to the propionic fermentation of bacteria) and equivalent retinol (provit. A) are distinguished.
Nutritional values (per 100 g of edible portion)
The leerdammer is a food that probably contains some traces of lactose. This detail, omitted in the nutritional table, is useless for normal subjects and of little significance for those suffering from poor tolerance to the disaccharide; on the other hand, in the most severe forms it is completely inadvisable. It does not contain gluten and can be included in the diet against celiac disease.
As a derivative of milk, it is a food unsuitable for vegan nutrition; nevertheless, by providing for the use of vegetable rennet, it lends itself to the lacto-ovo vegetarian diet.
The high caloric density and an equally important lipid fraction (about 45% of dry matter) make leerdammer a food not recommended in case of overweight. In fact, most cheeses (especially aged ones) would rarely allow to respect the caloric limit and lipid content of a slimming diet. Just think that, in the context of a Mediterranean diet (fat at 25-30% of total calories), 100g of this cheese would provide:
- 50% of the fats needed in an energy regime of 1700-2000kcal
- Up to 100% of the fats needed in an energy regime of 850-1000kcal.
It should also be kept in mind that the chemical nature of the fatty acids contained in the leerdammer is mainly of the saturated type and therefore negatively affect cholesterolemia (by increasing bad LDL cholesterol). Furthermore, the concentration of cholesterol itself inside the food is presumably quite high. For both reasons, the leerdammer should be avoided in case of hypercholesterolemia.
The hypothetical calcium content is satisfactory to say the least and can help to reach the most significant recommended levels, that is, those for growing subjects, postmenopausal women, pregnant women and nurses.
On the other hand, the presumed sodium concentration should preclude its use in the diet against arterial hypertension, a disease against which it exerts a negative effect. The intake of phosphorus should also be significant, but does not fully respect the ratio desirable with calcium (for more information, read: The Right Relationship Between Calcium and Phosphorus).
The average portion of leerdammer, in the absence of pathologies or overweight, should be about 80g (364kcal and 22.4g of lipids).
