9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Foodie culture is obsessed[br]with authenticity.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
But when we get Moroccan honey,
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
San Marzano tomatoes,
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
that means shipping food, [br]carbon emissions,
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
plenty of waste and excess packaging
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
for food that, sometimes, [br]not even as fresh or delicious.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Adding COVID-19,[br]and you have a whole new problem.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Frozen supply chains or closed borders.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
That's changing how we eat and[br]forcing us to also look what's local.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Some countries like Russia [br]have a lot of experience with this.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
MADE IN RUSSIA
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(Alec) Jay Klouz has been[br]a nightclub promoter in Spain,
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
a tour boat owner in France,[br]and a celebrity chef in Australia.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Now, the American lives in Russia [br]where he's added cheesemaker to the list.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(Jay) Every person has a different hand[br]and this hand makes cheese.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
You could be more aggressive[br]and you'll have another cheese.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
You could be more careful[br]and you'll have another cheese.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
You can even go half a degree higher[br]and you'll have another cheese.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(Alec) Klouz uses local ingredients [br]to make European favorites,
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
like feta, gouda, and ricotta.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Flavors that began to make their way here [br]after the fall of the Soviet Union.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(Alec) So, I grew up in Wisconsin, [br]and we always had, you know,
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
we had cheddar, pepper jack, all sorts of,[br]you know, real sharp cheeses.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Love this stuff.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
And then I came to Russia,
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and it was like, cheese was white [br]and didn't taste like anything.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Tastes like plastic.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
So, what made you decide to start[br]making your own cheese?
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
You know, one thing you learn in Russia,[br]the winters are rough.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
The Russians prepare for winter
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
so, being prepared means, [br]also eating good stuff.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(Alec) For years, Russia imported [br]as much cheese as it produced
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
until 2014.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Russia annexed Crimea,
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
the US and the EU slap sanctions on Russia,
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and President Putin responded by[br]banning food imports from those countries.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Cheesemakers like Klouz [br]saw sales go way up.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Russian production[br]increased by at least 50%.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
- (Klouz) Please don't forget to return my spoon.[br]- (Sofia) Yes, return the spoon. Thanks.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
After Russia stopped purchasing[br]cheeses abroad,
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
the cheese market changed a lot.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
So we started buying here.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
We are very satisfied[br]with the price and quality.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(Alec) And how have the current sanctions[br]changed the industry?
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(Klouz) With the sanctions there's [br]more interest in the people making cheese.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Like, "Oh, we don't need you, [br]we have Jay."
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I'm like, yeah, right. Fifty kilos a day,[br]how am I going to feed Russians?
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
"Jay will save us!", I'm like, what?[br](laughter)
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
People are funny here.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(Alec) But some people are more confident[br]in local producers ability
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
to fill the giant cheesy hole[br]left by the counter sanctions.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Klrill Sharshukov imported Italian cheese
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
until the food embargo forced him[br]to start making his own.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(Sharshuko) Here we have Caciocavallo cheese.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
A classic Italian Caciocavallo cheese.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
It is fermented for about 6 to 12 months
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
and has a specific, light taste.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
And here we added fenugreek seeds.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Tastes like cheese with with walnut,[br]kind of sweet dessert-y crunch.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
It doesn't have nuts?
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
No, no. This doesn't have any nuts,[br]but is has that flavor.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I don't know if this is allowed on TV,
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
but these seeds are[br]healthy for men, apparently.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
So this is delicious and healthy for me?[br](laughter)
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(Alec) After the embargo,
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
the government started giving[br]out subsidies and tax breaks
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
to boost domestic production.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Something Sharshuko believes
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
is giving Russians a chance to catch up[br]to the world's cheesemakers.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(Sharshuko) The longer this goes on,[br]the more experiences we have.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
We reproduce Italy's cheeses here,
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
replace its classic cheeses,[br]and produce them.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
So it would be very difficult to return.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
But the Russian cheese revolution [br]isn't for everybody.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Imported foods were always[br]too expensive for most Russians.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Meaning locally-made burrata will probably[br]never be on their shopping list.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
And economists are skeptical
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
that the people [br]who could afford fancy cheese
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
are going to see local versions as anything[br]other than a secondary substitute.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
When we imported cheese, it had quality.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
We, the small portion of affluent people,[br]got used to it.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
When that cheese disappeared,
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
those people stopped buying[br]Russian copies of cheese
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
because they don't trust the quality.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Well, I hear from the cheese producers--
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Russian cheese producers--
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
who say sanctions have been a huge help.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Those you spoke to are very few[br]because, as a matter of fact,
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
90% of the Russian cheese market
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
is mass market cheeses.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
I wanted to ask what will happen
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
to Russian cheesemakers[br]if sanctions are lifted tomorrow?
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
There will be[br]competition again for 15 to 20%
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
of wealthy people in Russia.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
People who have invested[br]in cheese production
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
will be hit hard.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(Alec) The drive for food Independence[br]has protected Russia
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
from supply disruptions during [br]the pandemic, the government says.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
It's also helped a fledgling,[br]farm-to-table movement here.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
- Five more minutes.[br]- No, two and a half.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
(Alec) Ivan and Sergey Berezutskly have[br]their own farm to produce ingredients
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
for their restaurant,
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
which in 2019 was named [br]one of the best in the world.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
It's a simple dish: potato with caviar.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
Here you are.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
The majority of our guests[br]need healthy and fresh food.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
This is a development Russia[br]and other countries have come to.
9:59:59.000,9:59:59.000
The sanctions have[br]accelerated the process.