We All Scream for Ice Cream – Parque Mega-Fauna Monteverde, Monteverde, Puntarenas Province, Costa Rica

The Monteverde Cheese Factory has played an integral role in the development of the Monteverde community since the 1950s, when a group of American Quakers arrived on the scene and began farming dairy cattle. They opened the factory in 1953, using the milk from their own farms to produce about 10 kg of cheese per day. Within two years, their reach had expanded to nearby, non-Quaker farms, whose milk was used to make an increasing amount of cheese. This was an important step in this rural economy, as it helped generate a living for many of the farmers and families living in the central highlands of Costa Rica. The company – whose official name is Productores de Monteverde S.A. – now works with over 250 farms and employs over 300 people. Their daily output of cheese is now roughly 1,550 kg.

The first cheese that the factory made – which, in fact, was the first pasteurized cheese to be made in all of Costa Rica – was a Gouda. Over the last sixty years, the range of cheeses the factory produces has skyrocketed to an astounding 17 different varieties. Their ice cream selection is extensive as well, and uses local crops to produce such flavors as coffee, coconut, mango, orange and pineapple.

In addition to serving what is arguably the best ice cream in Costa Rica, the Cheese Factory is adjacent to Parque Mega-Fauna Monteverde which boasts a mile-and-a-half trail that wends its way through some 26 statues of dinosaurs and prehistoric animals that depict animals from the Triassic to the Jurassic to the Cretaceous.