France relaxes cheese-making rules due to historic drought

France has temporarily relaxed rules for making some of its best-known cheeses after the summer drought drastically reduced grass available for dairy herds. Government decrees granted dispensations to manufacturers of Abondance, Beaufort, and Comté cheeses from eastern France, allowing them to feed livestock with grass and hay from outside their strict geographical zones. Other cheeses expected to receive similar waivers include Cantal, Bleu d'Auvergne, Fourme d'Ambert, Bleu du Vercors-Sassenage, Reblochon, and Rocamadour. The National Institute for Origin and Quality (INAO) also approved temporary changes for other protected products like Calvados, cider, Crémant d'Alsace, lamb from Poitou-Charentes, and Reine-Claude plums. The derogations are allowed under French and European law for exceptional weather, similar to measures after the 2022 drought. The changes raise questions about the viability of traditional labels of origin under climate change.