The traditional “marquesita” with “queso de bola” (Edam cheese), an icon of Yucatecan street food, is no longer as affordable as it once was. In recent weeks, vendors of this snack have reported an increase of up to 100% in the price of this cheese, an essential ingredient in its preparation, forcing many to raise their prices or even temporarily stop selling.
“We used to get a cheese ball for 350 pesos; now it’s over 700. We had to raise prices by up to 40% to keep selling,” said a marquesita vendor who works in the park in the Miguel Alemán neighborhood, who preferred to remain anonymous.
He explained that although some of his colleagues tried to maintain their usual price of 50 pesos to avoid losing customers, many ended up giving in or even temporarily abandoning the business, as the activity became unsustainable when they had to sell each marquesita for 75 pesos. This phenomenon is not limited to marquesitas; the increase has also affected bakeries and restaurants, where Edam cheese, traditionally imported from the Netherlands, is an essential part of various dishes.
In restaurants, where “queso de bola” is part of iconic recipes such as queso relleno (stuffed cheese) or chaya empanadas, the outlook is also bleak. Valeria Ramírez, chef of a traditional cuisine restaurant in Mérida’s Historic Center, said the increase took them by surprise.
“We can’t substitute it with another cheese. Its flavor is unique and irreplaceable in our cuisine. So we absorb the cost ourselves, even though it represents a considerable decrease in our profits,” she explained.
The El Gallo Azul brand, one of the main distributors of Edam cheese in Mexico, has already announced in a statement that they are taking steps to restore regular distribution of the product.
They regretted the inconveniences caused by the shortage and assured that supplies would return to normal starting in June throughout the country, including Yucatán.
Claudia González, president of the National Chamber of the Restaurant and Seasoned Food Industry of Yucatán, has pointed out that the “queso de bola” crisis represents a significant challenge both for the preservation of Yucatecan culinary traditions and for the continuity of businesses that depend on this essential ingredient since it is consumed more in the region than even in its place of origin.
“We cook a lot of our Yucatecan dishes, we make stuffed cheese, we make cheese empanadas, cheese Salbutes, our famous Marquesitas, cheese ice cream, well, the cakes, but it’s not just happening in Yucatán, it’s also happening in Quintana Roo,” he said.
TYT Newsroom
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