No one knows who made the first cheese，but an old leqend says that it was an Arabian merchant．He put his milk in a pouch made from a sheep's stomach and set off across the desert．The jouncing of his camel，the desert heat，and the chemicals in the pouch lining made the milk separate into curds and whey．The thick part，or curd，was the first cheese．

Ancient records show that cheese has been eaten for more than four thousand years．From earliest times it has been considered a very nourishing food．Americans eat less cheese than people in some countries do，yet they still consume eight to ten pounds a year per person．

Today cheese is made all over the world．Most cheese is made from cow's milk，because the suppply of this milk is greater throughout the world．Smaller quantities come from the milk of other animals—goats，sheep，camels，and even reindeer．

關于乳酪的一個古老傳說

沒有人知道誰制成了第一塊乳酪，但是一則古老的傳奇故事說，那是一位阿拉伯商人。他把牛奶放在用羊胃做成的旅袋里，動身穿過沙漠。駱駝的搖動，沙漠的灼熱，以及旅袋里層中的化學物質使牛奶離析成凝乳和乳清。這稠的部分，或者說凝乳，便是第一塊乳酪。

古老的記載表明，人們食用乳酪已有4，000多年的歷史了。從最遠古的時代起，它就被看成是營養(yǎng)豐富的食品。美國人比某些國家的人吃乳酪要少些，然而，每人一年仍要消耗8到10磅。

今天，世界各地都制造乳酪了。大部分乳酪是用牛的奶做的，因為在全世界這種奶的供應量較大。少量乳酪來自其他動物的奶，如山羊，綿羊，駱駝，甚至馴鹿。