Allgäu Milch Käse — the Cooperative Behind the PDO Wheels

An independent profile. bavariancheese.com is not owned by or affiliated with any cheesemaker — including this one.

Why this maker matters

Behind every famous PDO wheel is somebody making it at volume — and in the Allgäu, that somebody is often Allmikäs. 917 member farms pool their milk into one cooperative that turns out the region’s signature hard cheeses by the thousands of tonnes. If you’ve eaten Allgäuer Emmentaler without knowing the dairy, there’s a good chance it came from Kimratshofen.

The story

1960: Allgäu farmers found a cooperative dairy in Kimratshofen. The model never changes — today 917 member farms, 890 of them active suppliers, deliver around 400 million kilos of milk a year, which becomes roughly 22,500 tonnes of cheese (including 10,000 organic), 10,000 tonnes of butter (including 3,400 organic), and 19,500 tonnes of quark (including 3,700 organic). The cooperative employs around 275 people and turns over about €330 million (January 2026 figures).

Allmikäs is a key volume producer behind the PDO supply — Allgäuer Emmentaler and Allgäuer Bergkäse made to the protected specifications — alongside Gouda, Maasdam, Allgäuer Butter, and quark. Much of it leaves as private label, which is why the name stays invisible while the cheese is everywhere. The cooperative is the quiet infrastructure of the Allgäu’s cheese reputation.

The cheeses

PDO Allgäuer Emmentaler — volume production to protected spec; full entry →
PDO Allgäuer Bergkäse — ditto; full entry →
Gouda, Maasdam — the semi-hard range
Allgäuer Butter, quark — the fresh-dairy backbone

Finding it in America

No Allmikäs-branded US distribution could be verified — and that’s structural, not accidental: much of the output is private label, so the cooperative’s cheese may reach you under someone else’s name. The honest guidance: when you buy PDO Allgäuer Emmentaler or Bergkäse from a German importer, you’re likely tasting cooperative Allgäu milk — whether the label says so or not.

Visiting

No public visitor program could be confirmed — check the cooperative’s site before planning a trip.