Edam Cheese

Food · Dairy · Food, Typed Supps

A firm, aged cheese that’s a strong calcium source, though it comes with a good amount of salt.

Stage by stage

Intake (Chewing begins): Chewing breaks down the firm, aged cheese.
Stomach (Casein curdles): Stomach acid curdles the casein protein and begins breaking it down.
Small intestine (Calcium & protein absorbed): Calcium, amino acids, and vitamin A absorb into the bloodstream.
Bone (Calcium built into bone): Calcium is deposited into bone tissue, supporting bone density over time.

Timing

Any meal; its own fat carries the vitamin A it contains.

Time to effect

Months: Bone density responds to sustained calcium intake over months.

Allergens

Contains: Milk. Derived from what this food is, not from a product label.

Eating patterns

Fits: Vegetarian, Pescatarian, Halal, Kosher, Keto, Gluten-free. Depends on the product: Low-FODMAP.

Satiety

103 on the satiety index, where white bread is 100 — moderate. Modelled from the Holt et al. (1995) measurements.

Environmental footprint

23.9 kg CO2e and 5605 litres of freshwater per kg, matched to "Cheese" in Poore & Nemecek (2018), Science 360.

Cost band

Mid — roughly £8 per kg, as a band midpoint rather than a price.

Key nutrients

Calcium
Protein
Vitamin A

Nutrition per 100g

Calories: 358.5
Protein: 27.4g
Carbohydrate: 0g
of which sugars: 0g
Fat: 27.2g
of which saturated: 17.2g
Fibre: 0g
Sodium: 900mg

Food vs. supplement

A 100g serve provides around 810mg calcium — roughly 80% of a typical daily target — plus 27.4g of protein, though its 900mg sodium per 100g is worth watching alongside that benefit.

Kitchen tip

Thin slices go a long way — strong flavor, firm texture, and a smaller sodium hit per serve.

Common myth

“Hard cheese is basically just fat and salt.” In reality: Edam is a genuinely concentrated source of calcium and protein — the real trade-off worth managing is its sodium content, not a lack of nutritional value.