Union of Agricultural Cooperatives of Naxos

It was founded in 1926 and since then it has evolved rapidly, so that today it is the driving force and the lever of growth for its rural world Naxos. Today, Union of Agricultural Cooperatives has 26 members-cooperatives and a total of 3.274 natural members (farmers-stockbreeders).

The most important activity of the Union is cheese-making. In 1961, he creates the first cheese factory and in 1985, in the area Glynado of Naxos, a modern and competitive dairy and cheese unit is created. Today, the Union mainly produces Naxos gruyere (PDO), Kefalotyri (from sheep and goat milk), with the products produced absorbing about 12.000 tons per year, over 70% of the island's milk production, while at the same time it is a brilliant model of a healthy cooperative, with zero debts and obligations and ambitious targets for exports, which currently exceed 60 tons and are expected to triple.

The total production of dairy and cheese products of EAS exceeds 1000 tons producing a variety of products: Naxos gruyere (PDO), male, xinomyzithra, sour cream, myzithra, cream cheese, milk, whipping cream, butter, yoghurt. The experiments for the release of new products are continuous, in fact in the summer of 2015 I had the good fortune to try one of the first with the head of the Union, Iakovos Dimitrokalis, a young lad graduate of the School of Cheese of Ioannina, two new (experimental) gruyeres, one with the herbs of Naxos and the other with truffle oil.

Regarding the collecting process, about 500 breeders supply the Union with cow's, sheep's and goat's milk, in milk collection stations strategically distributed in parts of the island. The stations are all equipped with coolers for its preservation, while trucks-tanks collect it and transport it to the cheese unit twice a day, so that the cheese is made, no later than 8 hours from the moment of receipt. At every stage of the cheese processing, from the receipt of the milk until the last stage of maturation and packaging, checks and measurements are made in order to ensure the quality specifications of the products produced.

Her gas station EAS Naxos is located on the road to the port of Naxos.