Leerdammer is a Dutch semihard cheese made from cow's milk. It has an ageing time around 3–12 months. It has a creamy white texture and was made to be similar in appearance and flavour to Emmental. Its sweet and somewhat nutty flavour becomes more pronounced with age. It also has distinct holes. Advertising campaigns have used the slogan "De lekkerste kaas tussen de gaten" ("the taste is around the holes").
The cheese is produced exclusively by the Bel Group. The Leerdammer name is a trademark of Bel Leerdammer BV. On 22 March 2021, Bel Group announced it was handing over the brand and its related assets to Lactalis in exchange for the shares Lactalis held in Bel Group, bar a retained 0.9% stake.
Leerdammer cheese is produced in Schoonrewoerd in the municipality of Leerdam, the city which gave Leerdammer its name. Generic Leerdammer-style cheese is sold as Maasdam cheese. Groupe Bel has a second factory producing Leerdammer in Dalfsen, in the eastern province of Overijssel. It is also produced in France.
The cheese was developed by Cees Boterkooper, who had owned a small dairy in Schoonrewoerd since 1914, and Bastiaan Baars, who ran a cheese shop in a nearby village. The two met in 1970, and soon afterwards decided to collaborate. They worked on a cheese that could compete with Gouda and Edam. Leerdammer was launched in 1977. It is available in supermarkets throughout Europe, Russia and the US.
