Not just a valley - a cradle for raising livestock
Nestled in the northern mountains of the Haute-Savoie (French Alps), on the Swiss border, the valley of Abondance is the birthplace of an exceptional cheese that has inherited its name. After centuries of cheese making, Abondance cheese now enjoys AOC status: it is still produced exclusively in the mountains of the Haute-Savoie region using traditional cheese-making skills that date back generations and guarantee consistently high quality.
During the summer, many of the local dairy farmers put their cattle out to graze in the high mountain pastures, a belt of grassland that winds its way through the mountains at between 1,300 and 1,850 metres above sea level - a characteristic feature of the magnificent scenery of the northern Alps.
At this altitude the cows feed on nutrient-rich grass that enhances their lactation and gives Abondance cheese its special flavour. Then, as the green pastures of summer turn into the snowy slopes of winter - often popular with skiers - the cows are tucked up in warm, cosy barns where they feast on summer hay.
