Many People who visit Monteverde miss the cheese factory tour because they think it will be two hours of cheese talk. This tour covers far more than just dairy products. The history of the cheese factory is closely intertwined with the history of Monteverde.

Most everyone who visits Monteverde learns that the community was founded by Quakers escaping the draft during the Korean War because their peaceful religious beliefs do not allow them to serve. Not everyone realizes that all seven of these families made their living farming dairy cattle, and were reliant on the cheese factory for money, jobs and the majority of the food that sustained the community. 

People might also be surprised to learn that the cheese factory made 10.4 million dollars last year, employs over 1100 people (the population of the greater Monteverde area has a population of around 11,000) and buys milk from 250 farms in the zone. The cheese factory affects every resident and visitor to the area in many ways which go unnoticed, for example the union of cheese factory employees owns the only gas station in Monteverde, and so if the cheese factory did not exist the nearest gas pump would be 35 kilometers away!!

Of course, you will also learn a great deal about milk, cheese, the cheese making process and creative waste disposal solutions which make the cheese factory not only a responsible member of this ultra environmentally-minded community but also one of the most unique cheese factories in existence.

Not only is this tour done in an extremely informative, and interesting manner but it covers the unique, forward-thinking community of Monteverde. Few, if any, other tours in the area cover the history of Monteverde, for this reason alone the tour is worthwhile. Not to mention the great ice cream you can order on the way out!