The Laughing Cow (La Vache qui rit)
Also known as: La Vache qui rit
The Laughing Cow (La Vache qui rit) is a French brand of portioned processed cheese with a red cow on the box, created in 1921 by Léon Bel in the Jura; it belongs to the Bel group.
The Laughing Cow (La Vache qui rit) is a French brand of portioned processed cheese created in 1921. It belongs to the Bel group, which also owns Babybel, Boursin and Kiri.
According to Bel, its story began in 1865, when Jules Bel founded a cheese business in Orgelet in the Jura; the company later moved to Lons-le-Saunier. In 1921 Léon Bel, back from the war, took up a Swiss innovation, processed cheese, and launched La Vache qui rit. The red cow drawn by Benjamin Rabier dates from 1924; at Madame Bel's insistence it was given earrings shaped like cheese boxes. The brand reached television screens in 1968 and celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2021.
The Original round box is a processed cheese specialty in portions (8, 12, 16, 24 or 32 per box), made in the Jura since 1921 according to Bel. Its ingredients are rehydrated skimmed milk (from France), cheeses of EU and Swiss origin of the Cheddar or Gouda type, butter, milk mineral concentrate, melting salts (polyphosphates), milk proteins and lactic concentrate; fat is 17.5 g per 100 g. Bel says the brand is present in 136 countries on 5 continents, with 110 recipes adapted to local tastes and needs, some enriched with vitamins.
Bel's pages list the Original round box, Toastinette Original and La Vache qui rit À Cuisiner Nature.
Facts
| Year founded | 1921 (Bel group 1865) |
|---|---|
| Country | France |
| Region | Jura (Orgelet, Lons-le-Saunier) |
| Raw material | Cheeses, milk, butter, emulsifying salts |
What it includes
How it connects to Cheese
The Laughing Cow (La Vache qui rit) → kind of → 🫕 Processed cheese and cheese products → kind of → 🧀 Cheese
Links
Frequently asked questions
Who owns The Laughing Cow?
The French Bel group, founded in 1865 in the Jura; Léon Bel created the brand in 1921.
Is The Laughing Cow real cheese?
It is a processed cheese specialty: cheeses of the Cheddar or Gouda type are melted with rehydrated skimmed milk, butter and melting salts.
Who drew the Laughing Cow?
The illustrator Benjamin Rabier; the red cow appeared in 1924.
Similar
Kraft · 🧀 Shostka · 🧀 Pyriatyn · 🧀 Cambozola · Saint Agur · Saint Albray