Local cheese for all your needs

With over a thousand cheeses from fifteen regions across Quebec – grouped into ten families, five different textures and a host of characteristics and designations – the Fromages d’ici website is a perfect introduction to the world of local cheese.  

Our aim was to elevate the existing digital platform to facilitate access to information and encourage users to explore different features. The new site enhances the cheeses’ discoverability while helping visitors better understand these exceptional products.

Whether a user wants to find a specific cheese, explore a category or learn more about a product, the navigation system makes it easy. Not only will they find what they’re looking for, they’ll be inspired to explore the platform further.  

With photographs highlighting the specific characteristics and uses of each product, the new artistic direction ensures that cheese in all its variations is the visual centrepiece of the site.

To improve user pathways and better support consumers, we refined the website’s search criteria. This meant undertaking an in-depth classification project in partnership with Les Producteurs de lait du Quebec and the Cheese Expertise Center (CEC). Together, we documented the aromatic profiles of Quebec’s various fine cheeses. 

This initiative led to the development of new taste labels to easily identify a cheese’s profile based on three factors: flavour, intensity and texture. These labels make the products easier to understand and help users choose the right cheese or find an appropriate substitute.

Since most visitors find the site through an organic search, it was essential to provide simple, effective responses to queries. We designed a precise classification system based on the main characteristics of local cheese and the most frequent search queries. This way, a user can easily browse the site and discover different products, whether they want to explore textures, flavours, intensity, characteristics or origins.

Cheese is an art and appreciating its intricacies can help consumers enjoy its full potential. That’s why we developed the ABCs of Cheese section, which provides personalized recommendations according to the type of cheese they’re looking for. For each family and type of cheese, we offer advice on preparation, cutting, tasting and storage, all enhanced by charming illustrations by a Quebecois artist.

Each cheese has its own page containing detailed information such as taste labels, moisture and fat content, prices and awards, and compatibility with various beverages. These give users a better understanding of the product, its uses, properties and pairing profiles.

Two distinct sections were developed to make fine cheeses feel more accessible and stimulate local appetites. The first focuses on presentation and easy-to-make culinary arrangements that enhance the existing customizable cheese plate tool. The second, called Fromagazine, features articles about the world of cheesemaking in Quebec with topics ranging from cooking and manufacturing processes to nutrition and news, all categorized by theme.

Fromages d’ici, a brand created by the Producteurs de lait du Quebec, strives to promote and help consumers discover the various cow’s milk cheeses made locally with passion and skill.

From one end of the province to the other, artisan cheesemakers use the highest quality milk to develop exceptional, award-winning cheeses typical of their respective regions. Through its various initiatives, Fromages d'ici makes it easier for locals to discover these unique products.

To find out more, visit fromagesdici.com.