Our advice

Buying advice

• Shop around: You’re likely to find brands other than those in our tasting in delis or specialist cheese shops. These stores often give you the opportunity to try before you buy. This is a good way to find out what you’re getting before you hand over any money. With pre-packaged supermarket cheeses, you don’t have this option.
• Price: This isn’t necessarily a good indicator of quality. There was often little price difference between the “good” and “below average” cheeses in our tasting. If you’re trying something new from the supermarket cheese cabinet, we suggest you buy a small quantity first to see if you like it.
• Medals: Some cheeses carry gold or silver medals indicating their place in cheese awards. A medal doesn't mean a cheese is necessarily better than a cheese without a medal: some cheesemakers don’t enter competitions. Cheeses entered into competitions are also hand-picked by the cheesemaker.

Storing and serving

• Cheese is best stored in a sealed container in the fridge to prevent it drying out or going mouldy once opened.
• Store different kinds of cheeses in separate containers.
• Wrap the cheese in wax paper or similar before storing.
• Serve cheese at room temperature. 

 Nutrition

• When it comes to healthy eating, it's important to think about the balance of your whole diet and not just pick on certain foods. If you can't get by without your daily cheese fix, go for lower-fat varieties or use less.
• In cooking, you can make up for using less by opting for cheese with a stronger flavour such as parmesan. In sandwiches and on crackers, you can reduce your cheese consumption by using thinner slices.

Report by Jessica Wilson and Belinda Allan.