Enric Canut

Born in Barcelona in 1956, Enric Canut i Bartra has spent his life wrapped up in the world of cheese. Though trained as an agricultural engineer, it didn’t take long before he found his true passion: artisanal cheese. Back in 1979, alongside Amagoia Anda, he opened La Formatgeria Catalana in Barcelona—one of the first specialty shops in Spain dedicated to artisan cheese. That move kicked off what would become a lifelong journey to put Spanish cheese on the map.

Not one to go solo, Canut co-founded the Association for the Promotion of Artisan Cheeses (AFQA) and Maestros Queseros Artesanos—organizations that support and defend traditional cheese-making in Spain. Between 1986 and 2010, he was also the guy behind the cheese selection for Vinoselección, a gourmet wine and food club that brought hand-picked cheeses into thousands of homes.

But his influence didn’t stop at Spain’s borders. Enric worked as a consultant for the FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN), traveling to countries like Chile, Peru, and El Salvador to share his knowledge and passion for cheese on a global scale.

A Tireless Promoter of Artisanal Cheeses

In 1996, he created a wildly popular exhibit at Alimentaria Barcelona called España, El País de los 100 Quesos (“Spain, the Country of 100 Cheeses”), which showcased the incredible diversity of Spanish cheeses. In 2007, his tireless work promoting cheese earned him the National Gastronomy Prize for Best Outreach Work from the Catalan Gastronomy Academy.

On top of all that, he’s an author of several books—including Quesos de España and Cheese & Landscape—and has contributed to top culinary magazines like Sobremesa and Viandar. He's even had some TV time, hosting the show L’Esperit del Vi on TV3 and appearing on the radio program De Boca en Boca.

These days, Canut is still going strong as a cheese producer at Tros de Sort, an artisanal dairy in the Pyrenees town of Sort, Lleida. His love for cheese hasn’t waned a bit—and his impact can be felt in every wedge of cheese shaped by his vision.