Fromagerie et boulangerie Svedjan
Visiting summer cafés is a must for locals in northern Sweden, and a way for long-distance visitors to explore the countryside and interact with the locals. Overlooking the lake Storkågeträsket, is where the life of one of Sweden’s most famous cheeses begins, Svedjan ost.
The facade of the farmhouse dairy is a plastered white and Pär and Johanna, living in the nearby house, make some of the best cheeses in Sweden. All the awards that the couple and their cheeses have won, attest to that. Gold medal upon gold medal in the Swedish Championship. Silver and bronze. Farming entrepreneurs of the year. The People’s Choice Award and words of praise from several other fashionable outlets.
In the barn next door to Svedjan Ost, their son, Alfred Hellström runs Svedjan Bakery, “Svedjan Bageri”.
In summer you can have freshly baked buns, eat sourdough sandwiches with the farm’s cheese with their own butter, and enjoy the view of the lake with grazing cows. Of course, you can also buy cheese and bread to bring home.
Svedjan Bageri uses local ingredients and dairy products from Svedjan Svedjan Ost, flour from Warbro Kvarn, as well as home-grown lettuce for as long as the season lasts. When in season the bakery uses local fruite and berries, such as cloudberries and blueberries on the pastries.
Svedjan replace their disposable items with more sustainable alternatives and strive to reduce food waste. For them, sustainability means knowing how and when everything has been produced.
It has to be done with knowledge and in interaction with nature, says the owners. Because everything is connected, the animals, the dairy, the farm and the history, and the cultural landscape. All of this influences your experience of the taste, which is why Svedjan cheese couldn’t be made anywhere else but here.