There was a time when stealing diamonds and cars were considered daring heists. Nowadays, even a dairy farm could be targeted. A Dutch farm was targeted for its valuable cheese wheels - worth $22,000. The thieves took around 60 cheese wheels, weighing around 22 pounds, produced from cow's milk. Career criminals often dream about the perfect heist, but we doubt anyone would anticipate this.
Apparently cheese robberies are quite common. So much so that chip systems are mandatory inside cheese wheels in many countries like the Netherlands in order to ensure that thieves aren't able to sell, or even cut up the wheels into pieces in order to get them past installed security systems.
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The real question here is why the thieves would choose to steal cheese wheels instead of expensive valuables. That's because this is not your standard cheese. These are luxury cheeses, found only on select farms around the world and they fetch a high price.
The Most Expensive Cheese
The world's rarest and most expensive cheese, known as Pule, is made out of the milk of Balkan donkeys. And it is only produced at the Zasavica Special Nature Reserve in Serbia. These donkeys are endangered and are under special protection. The process of milking takes three months. The milk produced is high in protein and has been recognized by the UN as a good alternative for those with allergies to cow's milk. The cheese is made with a secret recipe that has been used since 1700, and gives the rich and soft consistency to Pule. One kilo of cheese requires 25 liters of donkey milk. The farm sells only about six to fifteen kilos of cheese in a year.
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Other Contenders
Another luxury cheese known as Moose cheese is found only on one farm in Sweden. The milk is provided by three moose siblings named Gullan, Haelga, and Juno. The milking process is just as difficult as in the case of Pule. The process happens only during the months of May through September, during which they produce about five liters of milk daily. The cheese sells for $500 a pound.
Other luxury cheeses include White Stilton Gold found only in six authorized creameries in Great Britain. It is adorned with shining flecks of edible gold and is priced at $400 a pound; and Caciocavallo produced from a rare variety of cow's milk which is found only in southern parts of Italy. It is also called horse cheese because it was strapped to a horse's tail by traders in medieval times.
