Halloumi

Cyprus' iconic halloumi cheese remains a protected designation of origin (PDO) product after the European Union granted a crucial five-year grace period to comply with production specifications.

The decision, published in a new European regulation, provides Cypriot producers with breathing room until 2029 to adjust their practices to meet PDO requirements.

Cyprus' main exports for 2023 included mineral fuels and oil, halloumi and pharmaceutical products, according to the Cyprus Statistical Service (CyStat).

In an infographic published on Tuesday, CyStat shows that Cyprus exported 508.39 million euros of domestically produced goods to EU countries and another €1.84 billion to third countries.

On a cold winter evening in a car park in the Cypriot capital Nicosia, queues are already forming before former airline pilot Pantelis Panteli arrives in a small van to sell his produce.

After being made redundant following the closure of Cyprus Airways in 2013, Panteli decided to try his hand at cheese-making. He hasn't looked back.

A top court in the European Union on Wednesday rejected an attempt to drop the protected status of halloumi, staving off a challenge to the prized cheese that is one of Cyprus' top exports.

The Cyprus Cheesemakers Association has made a unanimous decision to shutter all cheese dairies starting January 10, 2024, following a protracted disagreement with government authorities over regulatory changes.

Halitzi, the traditional white cheese from the Cypriot region of Tylliria, has been officially recognized with protected geographical indication (PGI) status, according to an announcement shared on social media by the European Commission in Cyprus last week.

A year after the agreement between Cyprus' Agriculture Ministry, halloumi producers, and the Chamber of Commerce and Industry, it seems Cyprus' protected cheese is facing new challenges.

Cyprus' Minister for Agriculture Petros Xenophontos told the European Union's Agriculture and Fisheries Council on Tuesday that halloumi cheese should be exported to Australia duty-free. He was participating in a discussion on negotiations toward an EU-Australia Free Trade Agreement.

Cyprus on March 30 hailed a European Union decision to recognize halloumi cheese as a product distinct to the divided eastern Mediterranean island after a seven-year wait.

Known as halloumi in Greek and hellim in Turkish, the famously barbecue-able cheese is the island's biggest export, earning a record 250 million euros ($290 million) last year.

Cyprus is urging the European Union to speed up the process granting full name protection to halloumi cheese, the east Mediterranean island nation's top culinary export.
Cyprus government spokesman Prodromos Prodromou told The Associated Press on Wednesday that authorities are pressing the European Commission to speed things up.