Dutch cheese markets

thumb|right|250px|Wheels of Gouda cheese on sale at [[Gouda, South Holland|Gouda's cheese market]]

Dutch cheese farmers traditionally take their cheeses to the town's market square to sell them. Teams (vemen) of official guild cheese-porters (kaasdragers), identified by differently coloured straw hats associated with their forwarding company, carried the farmers' cheese on barrows that weighed about 160 kilograms. Buyers sampled the cheeses and negotiated prices using a ritual system, called handjeklap, whereby buyers and sellers clapped each other's hands and shouted out prices. Once a price was agreed, porters carried the cheese to the weigh house (Waag) and weighed the cheese on a company scale.

There are currently five cheese markets operating in the NetherlandsWoerden, Alkmaar, Gouda, Edam, and Hoorn. Each of these was once a merchant cheese market in operation during the Dutch Golden Age of the 17th century. Today, the markets still function as farmers' markets for cheeses in addition to hosting dramatic re-enactments of sales techniques from the Golden Age. In the summer months, shows are surrounded by stalls selling traditional items from Dutch culture.

Woerden

This commercial cheese market features farmers' cheeses with little of the spectacle or pageantry displayed by the other markets. For more than 100 years, every Wednesday morning, starting at around 9:00 am, there is a trading session between the cheese farmers and the marktmeester (market foreman), during which prices are set for the various types of cheeses. The cheeses for sale are boerenkazen (farmers' cheeses);

The Alkmaar Cheese Guild

The Alkmaar Cheese Guild (Kaasdragersgilde) was established on June 17, 1593, and is composed of 30 men who accompany their leader, the Cheese Father. The guild meets in the weighing square, and its members are divided into four groups called Forwarding Companies. The Forwarding Companies are distinguished by the colour of their straw hats: red, blue, green, or yellow. Each Forwarding Company has six carriers, who fulfill any number of tasks within the market, and one Tasman, who is responsible for placing the weights onto the cheese scales. The roles that carriers can fulfill are: Zetter (the first guildsman to show up at the market and is responsible for taking the cheese from storage to the market in the morning; he must wear black pants with a blue shirt), Ingooier (takes the cheese from the market to storage at the end of the day; he must wear black pants with a light fawn shirt), Temporary worker (not considered to be a member of the guild and must train for at least two years before being allowed to join), Bootelier (responsible for getting drinks for his company after the market is over), and the Voorman (head of the Forwarding Company, and often the oldest member of the company. Every two years each Forwarding Company elects a Voorman, who then wears a silver sign with a ribbon and a bow tie in his company's color). Finally, the Cheese Father is the head of the entire guild; he wears a white suit with an orange hat to match his orange cane, and all members of the Forwarding Companies refer to him as "Dad".

Traditions

The men of the cheese guilds adhere to strict behavior and dress codes. Those who fail to adhere to the guild face repercussions. The provost marshal collects fees from men who show up late or men whose uniforms are not "white as snow", and the money collected from these fines is used to sponsor a local school. The carriers are expected to be at the weighing house at 7:00 am the morning of the market to set it up and have it ready to open by 10:00 am. Every Friday, right before the market opens, the Cheese Father gives a speech to the Forwarding Companies. In his speech, he takes a roll call to ensure that all the companies are there, informs them if any important guests will be attending, and tells them the amount of cheese, in metric tons, at the market that day. At exactly 10:00 am, the town bell is rung to signify the opening of the cheese market.

Gouda

Gouda cheese has been traded on the Goudse kaasmarkt for over three centuries. Nowadays, it is open from mid-June until August, every Thursday morning between 10:00 am and 12:30 pm. Farmers from the region gather to have their cheese weighed, tasted and priced. The Gouda cheese market is surrounded by many exhibitions of authentic Dutch professions, from cheese production to clog making and buttermilk preparation.

Hoorn

Opened in 2007 on the Roode Steen square, this cheese market takes place between June 28 and September 20 on Thursdays between 12:30 pm and 1:45 pm, and again between 9:00 pm and 10:15 pm. There are live commentaries regarding the process of carrying in the cheese, weighing the cheese, and negotiating in both Dutch and English.

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