The Hole Truth on That Slice of Swiss

There soon will be more cheese in a ham and Swiss sandwich. The government announced that Grade A Swiss cheese will be allowed to have smaller holes to keep it from getting tangled in high-speed slicing machines.

Under the old standards, most of the holes, or “eyes,” in Grade A Swiss had to be 11/16ths to 13/16ths of an inch in diameter. The new standard, which takes effect Feb. 22, reduces the minimum size to 3/8 of an inch. The holes in Swiss cheese are formed by bubbles created by carbon dioxide-emitting bacteria.