Talk:Quark (dairy product)

Note
Quark is commonly used in Germany as well as in the Netherlands and Finland. Although german dairy companies might sell german quark throughout EU, it is not valid and necessary information in this article. --Arjuna 14:31, 23 May 2004 (UTC)

Quarks


''In German, Quark and Topfen may be used figuratively to mean "nonsense". This usage is believed to be an inspiration for the sentence Three quarks for Muster Mark in James Joyce's Finnegans Wake, which itself inspired the name of quarks, elementary particles of which most of the material world is built.'' So, like, the whole world is made of soft white cheese? (Unsigned comment by Kpalion)


 * Most of it. The Moon is made of green one. -- Naive cynic 15:53, 25 August 2005 (UTC)


 * An alternative theory (that Joyce's phrase relates to the cries of seabirds, and the word was previously defined in this way in the Oxford English Dictionary) is given here --PeterR 09:08, 27 September 2006 (UTC)


 * The sentence: 'As the large popularity of quark desserts is limited to mainly Germany, confusion might arise when talking about quark with non-Germans.' is nice, because literally with that idiom in german (talking quark = talking nonsense), the meaning is: When speakig nonsense to non-Germans that creates confusion:) —Preceding unsigned comment added by 131.155.110.214 (talk) 09:50, 23 July 2010 (UTC)

Weißer Käse
As a long-time resident of the Black Forest, I can speak authoritatively on Quark, which is a delicious soured whole milk product. It is made at home by letting whole milk sour and then draining away the whey. It resembles sour cream, but is soured milk minus the whey. The Austrians indeed call it "Topfen" or "Pot Cheese"---when in USA I have sought it in vain. I have looked for substitute for cooking/baking and have most often been referred to Cream Cheese or Ricotta or Mascarpone. I have also pressed all the liquid our of Cottage Cheese and pressed the curds through a sieve.

In response to the previous paragraph, what you are describing sounds like what is called Farmers Cheese in the United States.

I am native german speaker and I never heard this expression. If I search google for this term I find cheeses that are based on quark. Mostly used in middle/southern germany. But this is not quark anymore. In my understanding Quark is not Cheese. On the other side "Käsekuchen" is made out of Quark. Regards Hilmar


 * Hilmar, could you please explain it in more detail? If quark is not cheese, then what is it? What is Käsekuchen? Could it be that the term Weißer Käse is used in other German-speaking areas then yours? And if you think you can contribute something meaningful to Wikipedia, then be bold and edit the article yourself! Thanks – Kpalion (talk) 17:39, 3 November 2005 (UTC)


 * I'm not Hilmar, but according to the German Wikipedia it is a Frischkäse, which translates to cream cheese according to LEO]. I just entered the interwiki links between the English and the German pages of this term. The German page lists, among others, Mascarpone and Ricotta as other types of Frischkäse. However, I have to admit that I would call the produce described under cream cheese Streichkäse. BTW, Käsekuchen is a pie, it's called Topfentorte in Austria. Martg76 23:02, 4 November 2005 (UTC)


 * Hej, I am from Palatinate (south-western part of Germany). We use both expression but mainly we say Quark to the dairy product you buy in the store and Weisser Käse to a dish we eat with potatoes. It is almost the same but spiced with herbs, salt and pepper. But my grandmother (and many older people) used to say Weisser Käse (White cheese) even to the dairy product you buy in the store (or they made at home). Käsekuchen is just the German word for cheese cake made of Quark. Quark can be used to eat with fruit like mandarines, grapes or whatever, just like yoghurt. Quark can contain everything from 10% to 85% fat and is called different then. Here's a picture how I think Quark is typically sold in Germany and a recipe in english, how to make your own  Cattleyard 08:34, 15 August 2006 (UTC)

In my experience from living in Germany Quark is more like cottage cheese, the main ingredient you use to make Greek Zaziki, if that is more relatable for anyone.

I am a tourist in Munich as I write this, trying to figure out what Quark is exactly. The article is not helpful at all, frankly. Quark as sold in Bavaria is some kind of dairy spread.

as a medicine
some have traditional used it in Germany for sprains and bruises as an ailment. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 60.242.81.170 (talk) 12:16, 29 January 2017 (UTC)

Does anybody know what this stuff is?
"In Austria and Bavaria the name Topfen ("pot cheese") is used instead of Quark" - huh?? supermarkets in Munich sell about 20 different varieties of something called "quark". What is it exactly?

I'm German and we eat a lot of quark. Technically it is a cheese, but is quite different to other cheeses. It is far moister and softer and must be consumed within an few days after preparation. The huge number of varieties sold in a German shop derive from the fat content: Magerquark contains less than 10 percent fat and then there is quark with 20 or 40 percent fat. Quark is always made with low-fat milk and the cream is added later (sinful and most delicious). Also a number of quarks with different ingredients is sold: herbs (parsley, chives, ramson, shallots, chervil or a mixture of these), garlic, paprika and peppers, cucumbers, olives, radish, horseradish, fruits like strawberries or cherries, chocolate shavings … So I'd say 20 different varieties would be a low estimate.

Quark is called Weißkäse/white cheese in southern Germany and in Austria and Bavaria Topfen. Other names are Luggeleskäs, Bibbeleskäs, Matte … They all mean the same thing – rather like autum/fall.

A very good recipe in English for original German quark without rennet can be found here.

Quark is quite delicious and can be used in a vast number of receipes. As Magerquark is creamy without the cream it is highly recommend when on a diet.--Enka 21:54, 14 September 2007 (UTC)

Food --> Cheese?
Are we sure that this article should be called "Quark (food)"? All I'm seeing here is cheese, so shouldn't it really be known as "Quark (cheese)"? --Jitterro 04:30, 23 July 2006 (UTC)
 * Okay, I've moved the article to "Quark (cheese)" myself. If anyone objects, let me know. --Jitterro 22:19, 17 September 2006 (UTC)

I agree. Quark should be cheese! By the way I just bought some for the very first time at farmers market in San Mateo, California, USA. I is garlic Quark. Wow such good stuff. - Judge4all

In the Netherlands Quark is generally called Kwark, but has many varieties including: Magere Kwark (Thin Quark) or Franse Magere Kwark (French Thin Quark) which are much like thick yogurt. And actually very similar to the FAGE brand of thick Greek-style yogurt I've bought in the US. It's definitely NOTHING like cream cheese (b/c it's extremely LOW FAT) or cottage cheese (b/c it's smooth and has a taste that bites like yogurt) or sour cream (again, b/c of the LOW FAT content). However, the firmer varieties (which are more popular in Eastern Europe) are more like cottage cheese and perhaps that's what's being sold in the U.S. under the name "Quark." In which case, I agree that it be under the title "cheese". But, again, if any European Magere Kwark fans are looking for a substitute in the U.S., try FAGE brand Greek-style yogurt. It's delicious and, in my opinion, very similar. Sacs32 09:34, 20 March 2007 (UTC)

Quark is basically yogurt made with Buttermilk instead of of milk. More when I know more. :-) Thomas144 01:59, 8 October 2007 (UTC)

The German article classifies Quark as "food" (Lebensmittel) but I'm not sure they have a separate category for "Cheese" - it's not clear to me what the distinction is, although what I think of as Quark is not what I would call cheese, anymore than I would call yogurt cheese. (I note that the Wiki Article about Yoghurt doesn't seem to classify it either way). There is a really good chart on the German wiki that shows Quark as part of a family of sour milk products, including buttermilk, kefir, and yogurt. Thomas144 21:51, 9 October 2007 (UTC)

Quark is not cheese. 153.1.31.166 (talk) 08:57, 11 October 2012 (UTC)

Thankyou i got was i was looking for
Please tell me what are the spices used in quark

Bulgarian cheese
I have removed the reference to Israeli cheesemakers labelling quark as Bulgarian Cheese because of its origin. The only Israeli references/recipes mentioning Bulgarian Cheese I could find involved "crumbling" the cheese - not possible wifh quark or using it as feta, including "and Bulgarian cheese (Israel's answer to feta)" Yahoo Travel   barliner  17:43, 27 July 2007 (UTC)


 * "Bulgarian" or "Balkan" (or simply "White") cheese are all trade names for Feta-type cheese in Germany, some one managed to make "Feta" a protected nomination (must be made in Greece or something), I think. --145.253.2.236 (talk) 12:01, 2 June 2008 (UTC)

Clarification
I've edited and adding info to make it clear what this product is. I've also added some sources for it in the US where it is rare and hard to find. Hope this helps clear the puddle. Also, here is a chart showing the relationship to other milk products. Trying to figure out where Quark fits in prompted my translation effort. pschemp | talk 02:09, 7 January 2008 (UTC)

Fat Free!
Usually, quark is sold virtually fat-free. E.g. Sainsburys (UK) sells Bavarian Quark which has 0.2% fat, PLUS in Germany sells nearly fat-free quark called Magerquark, so does Tengelmann. Tesco (UK) sells Austrian Quark, which is virtually fat free. I am Bavarian, and I do not know anywhere where original & pure Quark is sold with fat: Fatty versions are usually the flavoured versions that are used for eating on bread or as deserts. Some desert quark versions are sold with added cream. Quark is said to be extremely protein rich (Sainsbury: 12.5% protein), and can be eaten to support muscle gain.

I believe most supermarkets worldwide sell low-fat versions, which has a higher market share than any other version. In that respect, the Wikipedia entry appears to be incorrect. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 194.24.233.94 (talk) 12:38, 18 February 2008 (UTC)


 * 20 % fat quark lingers besides the Magerquark in my German supermarkets. (Usually in 200 or 250 g instead of 500 g) - the fat is added after production, I think, and you don't buy quark for the fat... --145.253.2.236 (talk) 12:04, 2 June 2008 (UTC)


 * Hi there. No, Quark is NOT virtually fat-free. At least not in Germany. The fat-free stuff is more common in the UK (that's true for Yoghurt as well) - although it's difficult to get Quark there at all. But that is not the original version. I'm from Germany, and I have eaten Quark for all my life. --Urbanplay (talk) 11:00, 19 April 2009 (UTC)

"Because quark is consumed without aging, in the United States the milk must first be pasteurized"
I presume this is true 'if it is to be sold legally'. Is that the case? 128.100.110.82 (talk) 16:43, 4 April 2008 (UTC)


 * Good point. If you make it at home from unpasteurised milk, who's going to know?  OTOH, unless you've got your own cow, where are you going to get unpasteurised milk?  -- Zsero (talk) 16:57, 4 April 2008 (UTC)


 * You can get unpasteurized milk at some health food stores in California (from tuberculosis-tested cows). There are also periodic raids on Mexican grandmothers who are making queso-fresco in their bathtubs and selling it to the neighbors. Similar process, more salt. Maybe there should be a green cheese template. FiveRings (talk) 05:51, 12 April 2008 (UTC)


 * Ok, there is. Nevermind. FiveRings (talk) 06:00, 12 April 2008 (UTC)

merge proposal
I think tvarog, quark, farmers cheese is the same thing, with name different from location to location. - Obrez (talk) 00:29, 5 April 2008 (UTC)
 * I'd vote no way. Don't merge. I live in Berlin and I've never seen it sold as farmers cheese. In fact because there are so many different verieties of quark I would say that you might find only one which comes close to farmers cheese. By far the more popular versions of quark are the yogurt or cream cheese styles. So it would not fit in the farmers cheese article at all.  —Preceding unsigned comment added by 85.178.102.130 (talk) 09:44, 30 April 2008 (UTC)


 * Not the same thing at all. Here in CA farmer's cheese is sold in a brick, quark is sold in a tub. That alone should be evidence. FiveRings (talk) 15:39, 30 April 2008 (UTC)


 * problem is that its just the name that differs from locale to locale... as in your examples of Berlin and CA... in fact if you look under name section tvarog etc is actually names for Farmers Cheese. for example article says tvarog = quark, when you to polish market here, tvarog label says Farmers Cheese... here is a link that shows that tvorog is called farmers cheese http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.jsp?articleId=281474976749286 -Obrez (talk) 23:35, 18 June 2008 (UTC)
 * An article about Twarog/Tvorog has been recreated again. It does prove that merging of the tvorog article into the quark was a mistake. 176.99.250.68 (talk) 08:45, 6 November 2023 (UTC)


 * here are links describing quark and farmers cheese:

http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-quark.htm http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-farmer-cheese.htm not the same thing FiveRings (talk) 05:00, 19 June 2008 (UTC)


 * Just munching on tvorog. It says tvorog on the label. Frischkäse on the German label. Made in Lithuania. For some reason, it should technically be the same as Quark, but isn't, it's way firmer and "dry"er. It has about the same protein content (14%, 15%) as magerquark (12..13%) but is way firmer. It also tastes more cheesy, but only slightly so (still bland). I am not sure whether the increased fat content can be responsible for this, 20% fat Quark is very creamy. --88.75.233.151 (talk) 18:48, 20 January 2009 (UTC) Oh noes, I can not has original research. Ah well.

Quark
Quark is a very common product in Western Europe but hard to find in the US, Australia or New Zealand. I'm from Germany and therefore Quark is quite an ordinary component of my diet so I'll try my best to explain what it is. First of all there are very different ways of using Quark in the kitchen: as spread, for baking, for desserts and creams. Pure it hardly has any taste (sometimes slightly bitter - but that's actually a sign of low quality), is very firm, dry and of a very light, pure white. It's mostly sold as 'Magerstufe' (low fat), containig less than 10 percent fat - therefore it's dry texture. Quark with more fat is sometimes slightly yellow.

Desserts: Like yoghurt it's mixed with fresh fruits, chocolate or honey to create a thick, sweet paste. In most cases peole would buy pure Quark in plastic tubes (250 or 500g being common) and add the fruits at home, but some more complicated flavour-combinations (like cinnamon-apple) can be bought ready-made - often with added cream. Quark is less sour, firmer and drier than yoghurt and doesn't coagulate when mixed with acidic fruit juices but becomes of a very creamy texture when stirred.

As Herb&Spices cream: Quark is also mixed with common herbs like parsley, pepper and dill, either used as spread for dark bread or as a sidedish for potatoes (especially with oven-baked ones). These herb varieties are very common both in restaurants and ready-made in shops. Nowadays it's also mixed with less traditional spices like curry, chilli or lemon-grass to create dips - sometimes blended with yoghurt. Furthermore it is sometimes added to vegetable pastes (like eggplant) to improve the texture - using them as spread.

For Baking: Unlike yoghurt Quark does not coagulate under the influence of heat, but hardens, which makes it a very popular ingredient for cakes and pastry. Cheesecake is therefore not only referred to as Käsekuchen but also as Quarkkuchen. Quite common, next to cheesecake in all varieties, are the following products: "Quarktaschen" (quarkbags) or "Plunder" are basket-shaped sweet pastries filled with quark and fruit. "Quarkkeulchen" (quarkballs) are dough scoops containing Quark, fried in hot oil and covered in sugar.

As "pure" Spread: There is a vast amount of varieties of Quark spreads - as they at least contain salt and have a different texture from pure Quark they're not used for above mentioned desserts. It's very hard to tell which still belong to the Quark group and hich are more classical cream cheese as different producers use different recipies - mixing different milk products. They range from dry cottage cheese to cream cheese (called Frischkäse - freshcheese), some bear the name Quark, some not. The English word cottage cheese has its equivalent in German Hüttenkäse which is sometimes called Krümelquark (crumb Quark) because of the texture, forming little crumbs when spread. But this cottage cheese is relatively wet and salty - sometimes being closer to ewe's cheese in taste.

Well I hope this does help - I think the essential thing is to tell the pure Quark from other cheese varieties. The German translation of cheese is Käse, but we don't use the word Käse for sweet cheese preparations like desserts (except Cheesecake) - therefore most people would not relate the white, tastelessly Quark to classic cheese like Gouda or Cheddar. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 87.159.206.127 (talk) 17:18, 29 April 2008 (UTC)

Quark/Topfen/túró/tvaroh is common to Central Europe as well... unless you are considering everything west of the Black Sea as Western Europe... Rsalisb5 (talk) 08:56, 30 May 2010 (UTC)

Skyr?
In the dictionary entry for Skyr it is said likely that lac concretum is used to refer to Skyr. Since the "Name" section doesn't site any references (and thereforelac concretum doesn't necessarily refer to Quark) I thought I'd point this out. --BiT (talk) 04:31, 14 July 2008 (UTC)

hungarian "túró" = cottage cheese
What hungarians call "túró" is more like cottage cheese than Quark. (in wikipedia) (same pictures used in wikipedia!!! + description is likely) And i don't think just hungarians think this.


 * I can confirm that Hungarians think that túró is indeed their variant of quark. You can dry "German" quark by the method described in the text and get "túró". Cottage cheese is produced in a different way. -- megA (talk) 16:35, 31 August 2009 (UTC)

I live in Hungary and túró is definitely not cottage cheese. It is curd cheese or "quark" as this article insists on calling it. "Cottage cheese" for "túró" sems to be one of those mistranslations that have become "folk English" in Hungary - like "ellenőr" being translated as "controller" instead of "inspector." —Preceding unsigned comment added by 80.98.228.78 (talk) 16:14, 3 January 2010 (UTC)

Túró = topfen = quark. I would also argue with the statement in the original article that "the large popularity of quark desserts is limited to mainly Germany". Not at all - this statement is completely false and misleading. Quark (topfen, túró, tvaroh, etc.) is used throughout Central Europe, in countries like Austria, Hungary, Czech Republic and Slovakia, for a nearly endless variety of both sweet and savoury treats. I am new to this editing and discussing thing, but perhaps someone should update this article to reflect reality? Rsalisb5 (talk) 08:51, 30 May 2010 (UTC)


 * I disagree. I'm Hungarian and túro is definitely not quark. Quark, as sold in Germany, Sweden and other countries is more like a dense, sticky yoghurt in its consistency. Túró is grainy, like cottage cheese, because it's made with rennet.
 * Túró: http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-LW9BSn8n-z8/TwM1ML48qzI/AAAAAAAAAUE/eApW7l-84Yw/s1600/turro.jpg
 * Cottage Cheese: http://i128.photobucket.com/albums/p180/linz_nelson1981/CottageCheese.jpg
 * Quark: http://www.gourmetsleuth.com/images/quark.jpg
 * -S.M. 176.10.169.220 (talk) 01:18, 18 May 2012 (UTC)

beli sir
While Serbian "beli sir" is certainly delicious, its taste is distinctly different from Topfen/Quark, and it also has a different texture and consistency (somewhat similar to Mozzarella or maybe some types of Feta). I'm not an expert in these matters and don't know the exact processes, but it seems to me that these are really different products. 91.115.179.157 (talk) 18:25, 21 December 2008 (UTC)

Quark in Germany, Austria and Switzerland
Quark is made of pasteurized, defatted milk, fermented by lactic acid bacteria and in most cases by rennet. Fermentation transforms the milk into curd. Stirring causes it to "break" into curd and whey. The whey is then separated by centrifugation (in the good old days by letting it drip from a cheesecloth). The resulting low-fat quark may then be enriched by cream in order to range it into the usual (i.e. regulatory) ranges of 10 %, 20 %, and 40 % fat in dry matter. In Switzerland, the ranges are 15 %, 25 %, and 55 %. As a rule of thumb, 1 liter of milk is transformed into 0.5 kg of Quark.

In German formal terminology, Frischkäse (literally fresh cheese) is the general term for Quark, Schichtkäse, Rahmfrischkäse, Doppelrahmfrischkäse, whereas in formal Austrian terminology, there is no Quark but only Topfen and the general term is Käse (cheese) which designates amongst others Frischkäse as well as Topfen making it two different cheeses.

Quark may be a fromage blanc in Switzerland but is not, repeat not a French or Belgian fromage blanc. According to the French WP, the fromage blanc is made by rennet and prevented from fermenting by cooling.

The differences between various types of Quark, Topfen etc result from differences in the procuction process.

In German supermarkets, Quark is available in all sorts of varieties like Quark with various fruits, of with Müsli or with herbs combined or not with garlic ...

If Tesco (UK) sells "Austrian Quark" as reported above under Fat Free, it apears to prove that their sales promotion manager thinks that all British consumers believe that all Germans, even so called Prussians wear Lederhosen (thoroughbred South-Bavarians refer to all Germans north of Bavaria as Prussians).

I am not yet able to produce decent links. The production process is derived from various German links and the German WP article, the German Käseverordnung of 1986 as amended is published in Bundesgesetzblatt (but the relevant Attachment 1 is not in the official internet publication but only in a private web-site), the Austrian Milch-Meldeverordnung of 2001 can be found via google.at, and swissmilk.ch has official information on their milk products. I also feel unable to change the article without damaging the useful links, so I would be glad if somebody changes the article along the above lines and inserts the links. —Preceding unsigned comment added by AHert (talk • contribs) 13:46, 25 January 2009 (UTC)

Used in Cooking
Quark is commonly used for cooking. Recipes former-USSR countries (e.g. Russia, Ukraine) cuisines feature quark as ingredient for various salads, appetizers, main dishes and desserts.

Curd cheese is also very popular in Poland (actually it's one of the most basic ingredients of polish cuisine). It's main uses are: fillings of pierogi (ruskie or sweet version), pierogi leniwe (without filling), polish cheesecakes, spreads for bread, filling for pancakes. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 193.33.125.241 (talk) 21:03, 10 November 2013 (UTC)

Mecooking (talk) 18:47, 22 July 2009 (UTC)

Tacitus
Is there any proof that Tacitus ment kvark (rahka in Finnish) and not any other kind of thick milks (in Finland at least there are dozens of them starting with several different types of buttermilk). I mean the fact that is commonly used in germanic countries today does not mean that it was 2000 years ago and that stuff used then might have disappeared centuries or even much over thousand year ago. ---193.210.145.13 (talk) 11:26, 4 August 2009 (UTC)

Used as home remedy
CNN has been covering a story where the Olympic skier Lindsey Vonn used Topfen cheese to help heal her injury. -Legaia (talk) 15:53, 15 February 2010 (UTC)

Quark and Lactose Intolerance
I've seen numerous webpages how quark is suitable for people with lactose intolerance. But I can't find any authorative source about this on Google. I think it's worth an addition. Komitsuki (talk) 10:57, 22 March 2011 (UTC)

vs farmers and fromage frais
The quark (cheese) and farmers cheese and Fromage frais articles need work to be fully consistent and to clearly distinguish the three (or are some the same but with different names?). Ccrrccrr (talk) 00:35, 1 September 2011 (UTC)

Since when is Quark translated to Polish twarog ?
An earlier Deutsch-Polnisches Wörterbuch, book from 1772 by Stanislaus Nalecz Moszczenskipage 1797 translates the German Quark (Quarck) to Polish siadle mleko and Quarkkäse (Quarckkäse) = Polish z siadlego mleka and not twarog or tvarog, which is currently listed as Polish name for Quark. Wondering(50.173.166.172 (talk) 21:21, 30 April 2014 (UTC))
 * Siadle mleko is just soured milk, right? Quark is made out of it. One may only guess why that author decided to translate quark as soured milk into Polish. May be because typical German quark has a higher water content (up to 80%) and thus more soft than typical Polish tvarog? However, it is still tvarog. The difference between the typical German and East European versions is explained in the text. Soured milk is also sold in Germany and called Sauermilch or Dickmilch (thick milk). --Off-shell (talk) 11:17, 1 May 2014 (UTC)


 * Someone put the photo with "Polish twarog" on top of the WikipediaEN article about Quark (dairy product), which now gives the impression, that it is the same as German Quark. Yet, as you state, it is different. Why then the twarog photo on the Quark article? Apparently at the time Stanislaus Nalecz Moszczenski translated the German Quar(c)k to Polish language, he knew that it is siadle mleko. Was twarog or tvarog not in use yet? That seems to have come into use in Polish language only later. Wondering(50.173.166.172 (talk) 22:09, 3 May 2014 (UTC))


 * I don't know when the word tvarog first appeared in Polish language. The article is not just about the German quark. It is about all sorts of this dairy product in Central and Eastern Europe. These sorts only differ in the water content which allows one to consider them all as the same product. Moreover, the article also states that e.g. the Austrian version of quark (Topfen) is as dry as the Polish one. All these products are made in the same way, have the same historical origin, and are used basically in the same way. I'm not sure it would be helpful to split this article into two or more. Or would you also propose to move the Russian tvorog into a third article because its consistency may be slightly different? For me the situation here looks the same as e.g. with the article Cabbage roll. The national recipes differ but basically it is all the same thing. In principle, one could add a sentence here, that the creamy German versions are uncommon in Eastern Europe and they were even considered more like a kind of sour milk there. --Off-shell (talk) 22:42, 3 May 2014 (UTC)
 * There is no difference between polish twarog and russian tvorog — Preceding unsigned comment added by 89.101.219.195 (talk) 08:49, 13 May 2015 (UTC)


 * I agree with you, that basically all these products are milk products. But then again, the way they are treated makes the difference, just like all cheeses are cheeses, but oh how many different cheeses are there? In todays times, Olmützer Quargel makers are prohibited to name them as such. Yet Swiss, Tilsiter, Münster, Edamer, Parmesan cheese is made en mass in US. Even if it's basically all the same, the differences DO matter. Quargel, as Quar(c)k have been documented for many centuries, yet when you search google.com first pops up a different Quark, and not the edible kind. Your last sentence about the creamy version, it would make sense to add it here. (50.173.166.172 (talk) 23:19, 3 May 2014 (UTC))

Article name

 * Why the article is named Quark? let's rename it to Tvorog then. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 109.255.60.12 (talk) 19:19, 11 May 2015 (UTC)
 * Why should it be renamed to Tvorog? Quark is the German name for it, Tvorog is the Russian. Or may be Twarog, the Polish one? Is there a preference of one name over the other? --Off-shell (talk) 20:38, 11 May 2015 (UTC)
 * but why it should be named Quark? any reasons? It seems like Tvorog(twarog) is original name of this product. German quark is a loan word borrowed from slavic language.--89.101.219.195 (talk) 08:45, 12 May 2015 (UTC)
 * I think the reason is that someone who started this article called it "quark". If you want to rename it, there must be a reason for that. Otherwise one may start to rename it there and back every day. The loan took place some 600 years ago. Today, the word quark is native for German language. I think the argument that this is a loanword is therefore not sufficient. Besides, this product is so common for both the German-speaking and the Slavic countries, that one cannot say that one particular culture has a preference. Thus, in order to make a reasonable decision one should rather study how often each name is used in the English-speaking world. A simple Google count might be a hint, but could be unreliable. There are a lot of English language pages from Germany, Russia, Poland etc. using their own names. One might try to count the occurence of the different names in Google Books (selecting only books in English and removing physics books where "quark" denotes an elementary particle). Alternatively one may consider an English name like "curd cheese". --Off-shell (talk) 19:42, 12 May 2015 (UTC)
 * Someone just merged the quark article with the tvorog article and left the quark name for it. Maybe someone prefers German words for Slavic origin products I don't know but if you're going to find this product in shops (UK, Ireland) it's more likely to find it by twarog name than quark. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 89.101.219.195 (talk) 09:11, 13 May 2015 (UTC)

Looking at the history: the Polish Twaróg and Twarog were always redirects to Quark. The Russian Tvorog had a rudimentary page consisting of 2 sentences, and it was merged with a much more elaborated Quark page with the comment: redirect to main article which mentions this variation. At that time (January 2008‎) the Quark article was already well developed, while almost nothing was written about Tvorog. So there was probably no information to judge on its significance in the Slavic countries.
 * https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Twarog&action=history
 * https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Twaróg&action=history
 * https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Tvorog&action=history
 * https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Quark_%28dairy_product%29&dir=prev&action=history

As for the current occurrence in UK/Ireland shops, this may well be due to the recent immigration of Poles. I cannot judge on that, and I have no personal preference. It would be good to have several opinions on that from different English-speaking regions. What is more common in the US? May be also in Canada, in Australia. This will probably be determined by the fraction of immigrants from Germany, Poland and Russia in the respective locations. The occurrence in literature which I proposed before would be better, following WP:TITLE: Article titles are based on how reliable English-language sources refer to the article's subject. --Off-shell (talk) 20:02, 13 May 2015 (UTC)

Here is the result of my attempt with Google Books. I searched for each term plus the word "cheese". This should ensure that no physics books about quarks appear and that the books are in English. Results: These selections are not perfect. I also tried different ones, like term + cheese + food, or term + curd, or term + dairy. The numbers were different, but the fractions are the same: the selection with quark always dominates. --Off-shell (talk) 20:45, 13 May 2015 (UTC)
 * quark cheese: 7180
 * tvarog cheese: 1670
 * tvorog cheese: 906
 * twaróg cheese: 279
 * twarog cheese: 193


 * I googled just ’tvarog’ and it was 668,000 results 176.99.222.197 (talk) 07:33, 5 August 2022 (UTC)
 * And as of today 8,250,000 for "Quark cheese", about the same proportions. Sparafucil (talk) 07:44, 5 August 2022 (UTC)
 * How did you get this result? I googled "Quark cheese» and got ''About 176,000 results’’. (I got it you googled without the quates.
 * Quark is also a type of elementary particle and a fundamental constituent of matter. Google search does not represent the real usage of the word.
 * If you google quark it shows you articles about the elementary particle. If you google "quark cheese" without quotes, it includes articles about cheese without word quark at all. 176.99.250.68 (talk) 08:40, 6 November 2023 (UTC)

usage to help muscular problems
apparently this is a 'thing' i.e. putting wraps of it on the affected area

can anyone shed any light on the supposed benefits of this treatment? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 84.75.251.224 (talk) 19:54, 20 October 2015 (UTC)

ok I now realise there is a section on it but should this be set out as a subsection of 'other uses'? ″In Switzerland, quark is recommended by some physiotherapists as an alternative to ice for treatment of swelling associated with sprains, etc.[citation needed] It can be cooled in a refrigerator and then applied to swollen tissues (enclosed in a plastic bag). The advantages over ice are that it does not get so cold, reducing risk of damage to treated tissue, but stays cooler longer.″ — Preceding unsigned comment added by 84.75.251.224 (talk) 19:56, 20 October 2015 (UTC)

Regional cuisines: ref needed
"It is also fairly common in Canada as well as in the northeastern and midwestern United States." At least one citation is needed for this.Kdammers (talk) 08:21, 28 March 2018 (UTC)
 * Not to mention it currently names every single country or people in Europe except Greece, Italy, UK, and Ireland (and the fact that they're named now doesn't mean they couldn't be). Perhaps it should just become something like "in Europe", since the exceptions are already a lot easier to name. Prinsgezinde (talk) 21:43, 3 July 2018 (UTC)
 * Having this pointless unconstructive war with . I'm trying to generalize the regional cuisines where it's used, rather than requesting a citation of evidence for every one of some 30+ countries listed in the lede. The topic is poorly referenced in the general news or reliable food books or journals. So for the general Wikipedia user: generalize for geographic regions, or identify countries individually with a reference for each? --Zefr (talk) 21:10, 24 August 2018 (UTC)

Bacteria classification
Thermopiles are bacteria that thrive in extreme temperatures. Those used to make yoghurt thrive at 37C or blood temperature same as those described to make quark. 84.71.138.93 (talk) 17:27, 13 January 2023 (UTC)

Availability in other countries is not cited enough
I was originally going to write about the Lifeway Foods line in the Availability in other countries section being added long ago without a source, but now I find most content of the article is uncited and may be based off of anecdotal evidence. Does anyone have good experience with Quark in other countries, should the section be removed, or what's the best option?

I am adding Template:More citations needed section and Template:Citation needed to the offending content for now. JRubsWell (talk) 14:03, 21 March 2023 (UTC)


 * I see no reason to doubt the information in the section you mention and I would suggest to remove the templates. What exactly do you see as problematic?
 * What is the "Lifeway Foods line" ?
 * KaiKemmann (talk) 22:47, 10 May 2023 (UTC)
 * There is a problem when you read the rules of Wikipedia, specifically No original research, which in brief states that all content in Wikipedia must only come from credible sources, and cannot originate from editors themselves.
 * The templates serve to inform readers that no reliable source has been found for the information, so they know this is where it "comes from". It looks ugly, but hopefully that ugliness annoys someone with enough energy to find credible sources and add correct information based on those sources!
 * "'Lifeway Foods manufactures a product under the title 'farmer cheese' which is available in a variety of metropolitan locations with Jewish, as well as former Soviet populations.'"
 * JRubsWell (talk) 19:38, 29 October 2023 (UTC)
 * Hey, I noticed you've due to "misuse", can you clarify how they were misused? If they are indeed misused and need to be removed I can just remove the uncited content completely and resolve this issue; otherwise, I believe this change should be reverted. JRubsWell (talk) 14:31, 22 May 2024 (UTC)
 * I have reverted the changes as I don't see how they are being misused. I welcome any correction and links to relevant Wikipedia policy. JRubsWell (talk) 17:42, 22 June 2024 (UTC)
 * I have reverted the changes as I don't see how they are being misused. I welcome any correction and links to relevant Wikipedia policy. JRubsWell (talk) 17:42, 22 June 2024 (UTC)

Recent changes
Wwiki123456789, you seem to have deranged the outline and structure of the article with your edits. I do not really see any relevant improvements and would ask you to try and put things into a reasonable order.

Otherwise I propose to revert all recent edits.

best regards, KaiKemmann (talk) 22:47, 10 May 2023 (UTC)


 * I just followed editor JRubsWell's edit. He wrote the following: [Availability in other countries is not cited enough]He created a column for availability in other countries that had no references, so I moved the item to that. That's all. Therefore, the problems you present can be solved by asking JRubsWell. This is because the agenda presented by JRubsWell is the starting point. (I don't understand why Wikipedia doesn't need references, so I just moved them but didn't delete them.) Thank you. Wwiki123456789 (talk) 07:09, 8 November 2023 (UTC)
 * Hi, I think you may have misinterpreted my edits. I did not create any new content but added citation needed tags to existing content which doesn't have a source, see these diffs:,  The section Availability in other countries existed before and I simply added citation needed tags to inform readers of the lack of cited sources.
 * "I don't understand why Wikipedia doesn't need references"
 * It does, see Citing_sources. If this continues to be a problem then maybe the section should be summarily deleted if nobody can find suitable sources for the material.
 * JRubsWell (talk) 17:35, 10 November 2023 (UTC)
 * The previous part I wrote was worded differently. Thank you for the correction. I know what the edit is. There are many places throughout this article that are lacking in sources. Wwiki123456789 (talk) 23:16, 10 November 2023 (UTC)