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The Laughing Cow

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Brand of processed cheese products
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The Laughing Cow (La Vache qui Rit)
Other namesLaughing Cow Cheese
Country of origin
RegionLons-le-Saunier[2][3]
Source of milkCow
PasteurisedYes
TextureSemi-soft
Aging timeMade from aged cheeses, but not aged itself
CertificationTrademarkedbrand name
Related media on Commons

The Laughing Cow (French:La vache qui ritFrench pronunciation:[lavaʃkiʁi]) is a brand ofprocessed cheese products made byFromageries Bel since 1921. The name refers in particular to the brand's most popular product, the spreadable wedge.[4]

Description

[edit]

The cheese is a blend of cream, milk, and fresh and aged cheeses, particularlycomté, which arepasteurized to stop the ripening process. Versatile and keeping due to itspasteurization process, Laughing Cow can remain unrefrigerated for a limited length of time. The archetypal Laughing Cow cheese comes wrapped in the individual serving-sized foiled wedges and they are packaged in a round, flat box. Consumers have to pull a little red thread around the box to open it and the foil packaging also features a red tab for opening. The company was founded in 1921. The Laughing Cow is available in these formats in different worldwide markets:

  • Triangles, squares, or rectangles in various flavors.[5]
  • Spreadable tubs and jars
  • The Laughing CowDip & Crunch (orPik & Croq in mainland Europe), previously namedCheez Dippers, which are snacks consisting of bread sticks and cheese spread, and these come in four varieties; original, light,hazelnut andpizza
  • Slicing blocks of The Laughing Cow with a harder consistency like that of butter
  • Ma P'tite Vache Qui Rit, pods of cheese spread to be eaten out of the pod with a spoon, especially for younger children
  • Toastinette processed cheese slices, similar toKraft Singles
  • Bite-sized cubes, in various flavours and designed to be served as aperitifs at cocktail parties - which are calledCheez & Fun in many European countries, and alsoSnack Bites in theUK,Apéricube inFrance,Belgium and theNetherlands,PartyCubes inCanada,Mini Cubes inAustralia andNew Zealand, andBelcube inJapan andSouth Korea. They are produced in 24- or 48-cube boxes of one flavour, e.g.blue,ham,salmon,chili pepper andolive, or they are produced in 24- or 48-cube boxes of a particular theme, e.g., 'Cocktails du Monde', 'Petites Recettes', 'Tex-Mex' and 'Indian'.

Discontinued formats of The Laughing Cow include:

  • Giggles/Blop processed cheese pods for younger children
  • Squeeze bottles
  • Big Cheez Dipper (a larger version of Cheez Dippers)
  • Cheez Double Dippers (which containedcrispy bacon flavour bits in addition to bread sticks and cheese spread).

The Laughing Cow USA introduced a TV commercial in 2009 where the company introduced a new slogan, "Have you laughed today?". In 2010 they updated the brand's website to include cheese recipes.

A wedge of Original Creamy Swiss

Laughing Cow cheese is available in its original flavour, a light version with 7% fat, and an ultra-light version with 3% fat. In addition, flavoured versions of the cheese (such asham,gruyère,garlic,paprika,mushroom,chèvre,bleu,hazelnut,pizza,jalapeño andonion) are also available in various markets worldwide.

Evolution of the brand

[edit]

The concept of a laughing or smiling cow in advertising may predate the creation of The Laughing Cow brand. A 1903 advertisement in an American newspaper featured a smiling cow promoting "Star Brand Butter" and "Milton's Ice Cream".[6]

The Laughing Cow brand as we know it today was established later. On April 16, 1921,Léon Bel trademarked his brand, asLa Vache Qui Rit, in France.[7][8] Bel had made the original drawing himself, after seeing a travelling meat wagon duringWorld War I called"La Wachkyrie", aplay on the word forValkyrie.[8] The cow in the original drawing was not red and did not wear ear tags. In 1924, illustratorBenjamin Rabier edited the drawing into something more like the image that prevails today.[7]

The Laughing Cow is now depicted as a red and white cow appearing jovial, and almost always wearingear tags that look like the round boxes the cheese comes in. The blue and white stripes around the box date from 1955. Since 1976 both ear-tag boxes have been shown with the top side visible. Before then, one tag showed the top and the other showed the bottom side. The current logo uses theDroste effect, with the laughing cow appearing inside the ear tags.[9]

Kiri (pronounced in the same way as"qui rit") is a separate brand that Bel established in 1966.[10]

Worldwide popularity

[edit]

The cheese has long been popular in theUnited Kingdom andCanada as a children's snack.[11] The cheese has also been a constant, but hardly popular, product in theUnited States for a number of years.

Localized names include:

Other associations

[edit]
  • The product name and indicia were adopted by the crew ofWorld War II German submarineU-69, whose sinking of theSS Robin Moor was significant to US entry into World War II.
  • La Vache qui Rit is the name of an EP by late 1980sWashington, D.C., punk band Rain with connection toDischord Records.
  • Le Vache qui Rit is the name of a 1982EP byUKAnarchistPunkbandZounds.
  • La Vache Qui Rit is the name of a finishing move in the 1994 video gamePrimal Rage. The character Vertigo will move up to an opponent and transform them into a cow, which makes a disconcertedmoo as it runs away.
  • La vache qui lit ('The reading cow') is the children's book prize of the city ofZürich, and a children's book program in the Auvergne region of France.[13]
  • The Laughing Cow's mascot appears on the cover of the 2002 albumHuman by UK electronic musician Freeform.

See also

[edit]
  • Emmi AG - manufacturer of Swiss Knight brand of spreadable cheese wedges
  • Dairylea (cheese) - Similar popular spreadable cheese in UK/Ireland
  • Babybel - another internationally distributed snack-sized cheese product produced by Fromageries Bel

References

[edit]
  1. ^"The Laughing Cow, more than 90 years and still smiling".Groupe Bel. Archived fromthe original on 11 July 2016. Retrieved28 May 2017.
  2. ^Birck, Danielle (6 November 2009)."La Vache qui rit".Radio France Internationale (in French). Retrieved28 May 2017.
  3. ^"Découvrir".The House of the Laughing Cow (in French). Retrieved28 May 2017.
  4. ^"Welcome to the world of The Laughing Cow!".The Laughing Cow. Retrieved2022-11-21.
  5. ^"The Laughing Cow Spreadable Cheese Wedge Variety pack".Amazon. Retrieved2021-10-22.
  6. ^"The Miltons. Star Brand. Churn".The Saint Paul Globe. 1903-05-10. p. 11. Retrieved2023-07-21 – viaChronicling America.
  7. ^ab"Bienvenue à la Vache Qui Rit (1921)".National Institute of Industrial Property (France) (INPI) (in French). 12 January 2016. open the "+" beside "Combien de portions de...". Retrieved2023-03-20.
  8. ^abDéniel, Patrick (2011-04-13)."Les secrets de La Vache Qui Rit enfin percés !".L'Usine nouvelle.Archived from the original on 2021-12-21. Retrieved2023-03-20.
  9. ^Merow, Katharine (2013)."Escher and the Droste Effect". Mathematical Association of America.Archived from the original on 2 August 2013.
  10. ^"Kiri".Le Groupe Bel. Archived fromthe original on 2021-08-02. Retrieved2021-07-24.
  11. ^"Is Laughing Cow Cheese Gluten-Free?".Vegiac. 29 October 2021. Retrieved2022-11-25.
  12. ^"CSR"CSR情報 (in Japanese). ベル ジャポン (Bell Japon). お客様のニーズにお応えする商品.Archived from the original on 2017-05-09. Retrieved2021-09-22.
  13. ^"Les Editions la vache qui lit".editionslavachequilit.com (in French). Retrieved28 May 2017.

External links

[edit]
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