Editorial Policy

Last updated October 2, 2026.

Who writes KnowTheCheese

Articles are written and edited by the KnowTheCheese Editorial Team, which is credited as an organization rather than as a named person. The team does not run tastings or lab tests, so flavor and texture notes come from producer and designation records.

Advertising and independence

Ads are placed automatically by the ad networks named in the advertising disclosure. Advertisers have no say over which cheeses an article covers, recommends or ranks, and nobody pays for a placement.

Sources must match the claim

A source should support the exact cheese, product and condition being discussed. A protected specification can establish requirements for a named cheese, while a maker's technical sheet applies to that maker's product.

• Identity and production: use protected specifications, official registers and producer records for milk, region, permitted methods and maturation requirements.
• Food safety: use the relevant food-safety or public-health authority and identify the country and conditions covered by its advice.
• Nutrition: identify the food-composition record or exact product label, including the serving weight and units.
• Availability: retailer listings can describe the product, pack size and offer shown at that time. They do not establish that a cheese is available everywhere.

Source links should lead to the relevant document or product record. An internal link helps readers explore another article, but is not independent evidence for a claim.

When sources conflict, readers need to see the uncertainty rather than a broad claim presented as settled. A gap in the evidence is a reason to narrow the statement.

How an article is built and checked

An article begins with a list of sources chosen for the claims it will make: protected specifications and registers for identity, producer records for a maker's product, public-health authorities for safety, and food-composition records or labels for nutrition. Each article ends with source cards that name what was used and what for.

Wikipedia and cheese.com summarise other sources, so a new or rewritten article does not rest on them when a producer, designation, government, standards or peer-reviewed source exists.

They are used only for a fact nothing better gives, and the source card says so. Older articles are brought in line as they are rewritten.

Before publication each article is run through written checks. They compare the nutrition figures in the text with the figures in the panel, and reject first-person tasting claims, invented credentials and wording about how a page was produced.

A claim without support in the cited sources is left out rather than hedged.

Numbers need a clear basis

Nutrition figures need a stated weight so readers can compare like with like. A 28 g serving is a rounded portion rather than an ounce, which weighs about 28.35 g.

A generic food record does not establish the composition of every brand. Any conversion to another serving size should use the same record and make rounding clear.

Fat in dry matter differs from fat per 100 g of food, sodium differs from salt, and carbohydrate is not a measurement of lactose. These values should not be used interchangeably.

A minimum maturation period in a specification is not the typical age of every cheese sold under that name. Prices also need a product, pack size, market and date, rather than an unexplained price ranking.

Taste, cooking and images

Producer descriptions and published recipes can inform an article without implying that KnowTheCheese tested the product. Claims of tasting or a cooking experiment require a record of what was tried and under which conditions.

Pairing suggestions involve preference. A maker's recommendation should be attributed to that maker, and a suggested combination should not be presented as a measured winner without supporting evidence.

Illustrations can explain a shape, serving idea or preparation step. They cannot prove a product's identity, a cooking result or a side-by-side test, and captions should not suggest otherwise.

Food-safety guidance

Pregnancy, allergens and other health questions require more care than flavour descriptions. Guidance should identify the relevant authority and distinguish different national advice where that changes the recommendation.

A disclaimer cannot correct unsafe advice in an article. Safety information needs to agree across the answer, body, tables and any frequently asked questions.

General information cannot assess a particular cheese's handling history or replace advice from a qualified health professional. Readers should consult the current authority guidance and the product label where relevant.

Corrections

To report an error, use the contact form or write to [email protected], and include the article URL, the sentence or image in question, and a source if you have one. A broken-link report should identify the link and where it leads.

A correction should address the claim itself and any related passages that would otherwise contradict it. An updated date records a change to a page, rather than proving that every claim was checked again.