Feta is a soft, crumbly, brined cheese with a history stretching back millennia in Greece, where it remains a defining ingredient of the national cuisine — the salty, tangy centrepiece of a Greek salad, spanakopita filling and countless mezze spreads. Traditionally made from sheep's milk or a sheep-and-goat blend, feta is cured and stored in brine, which gives it its characteristic sharp, salty flavour and crumbly, slightly grainy texture. Since 2005, 'Feta' has been a Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) name within the EU, restricted to cheese made in specific regions of Greece using traditional methods — though 'feta-style' cheese made elsewhere, including Australia, remains widely available and popular. Nutritionally, feta provides solid protein and calcium at a moderate calorie cost, with its main dietary consideration being its notably high sodium content. Adjust the slider for your serving size.
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Serving size:30g
79Calories (kcal)
1.2Carbs (g)
4.3Protein (g)
0.0Fibre (g)
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📊 Full nutrition facts — per 100g
Nutrient
Amount
% Daily value
Level
Calories
264 kcal
13%
Carbohydrates
4.1g
1%
Protein
14.2g
28%
Total fat
21.3g
—
Saturated fat
15.0g
—
GI
0 — Zero
—
Calcium
493mg
49%
Vitamin B12
1.7µg
71%
Phosphorus
337mg
34%
Riboflavin B2
0.8mg
53%
Sodium
1116mg
—
Zinc
2.9mg
24%
Based on Australian NRV. Source: FSANZ Australian Food Composition Database.
📈 Glycaemic index (GI)
0
Glycaemic IndexLow GIFeta has a GI of approximately 0 — effectively zero. As a brined cheese with minimal residual lactose after fermentation and curdling, it has no meaningful effect on blood glucose regardless of preparation method.
0 · Low (<55)Medium (56–69)High (70+) · 100
💊 Key vitamins & minerals
Vitamin B12
1.7µg/100g
71% RDI per 100g
Calcium
493mg
49% RDI per 100g
Riboflavin B2
0.8mg
53% RDI per 100g
GI
0 — Zero
No carbohydrate impact
Phosphorus
337mg
34% RDI per 100g
Protein
14.2g/100g
4.3g per 30g serve
✅ Health benefits
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Exceptional vitamin B12 — 71% of daily needs per 100g
Feta provides 1.7µg of vitamin B12 per 100g — one of the highest concentrations among common cheeses, delivering 71% of the daily requirement. B12 is essential for nerve function, red blood cell formation and DNA synthesis, and is found almost exclusively in animal foods, making feta a genuinely useful contribution for people who don't eat much meat.
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Strong calcium and riboflavin combination for bone and energy metabolism
At 493mg of calcium per 100g alongside 0.8mg of riboflavin (53% RDI), feta supports both bone mineralisation and the cellular energy production pathways riboflavin is involved in. A typical 30g crumbled serve over a salad provides roughly 148mg of calcium — a meaningful contribution from a flavour-forward garnish quantity.
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Fermentation may support gut health and lactose tolerance
Feta's brining and fermentation process — traditionally involving natural lactic acid bacteria — reduces its lactose content compared to fresh cheese and milk, and some traditional unpasteurised feta retains live bacterial cultures with potential probiotic activity, though pasteurised commercial feta (the norm in Australia) has typically had these cultures deactivated by heat treatment.
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Solid protein density for a soft cheese
Feta's 14.2g of protein per 100g is respectable for a soft cheese, sitting between fresh cheeses like ricotta (9g) and firmer aged cheeses like cheddar (25g). Combined with its distinctive salty tang, feta functions well as a protein-adding flavour enhancer across salads, pastries and Mediterranean dishes without needing to be eaten in large quantities.
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⚠️ Who should limit or avoid
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High sodium — 1116mg per 100g
Feta's brine-curing process gives it a substantial sodium content — a 30g serve provides approximately 335mg, around 15% of the daily recommended limit. For people managing hypertension, feta should be used thoughtfully rather than heaped generously, and rinsing crumbled feta briefly under cold water can reduce surface sodium somewhat.
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High saturated fat relative to volume
At 15g of saturated fat per 100g, feta is fattier than many fresh cheeses. A 30g serve provides 4.5g — modest in isolation, but feta is often used generously across a dish (a full block crumbled over a large salad, for example), so portion awareness matters for people managing cardiovascular risk factors.
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Pregnancy — only pasteurised feta is safe
Traditional and some imported feta can be made from unpasteurised milk, which carries a listeria risk that is particularly dangerous during pregnancy. In Australia, always check that feta — particularly imported or delicatessen-sourced varieties — is made from pasteurised milk before consuming during pregnancy. Commercial Australian supermarket feta is reliably pasteurised.
✅ For most healthy adults, feta used as a flavour-forward addition to salads, pastries and Mediterranean dishes offers useful B12, calcium and protein. Its high sodium content is the main consideration — best enjoyed in moderate, considered portions rather than large quantities.
⚕️ General nutritional information only — not a substitute for professional medical or dietary advice.
🛒 How to select & buy feta
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Greek PDO feta vs feta-style cheese
Greek PDO feta: made only in specific Greek regions from sheep's milk or a sheep-and-goat blend (minimum 70% sheep), aged in brine a minimum of two months, protected by EU law since 2005 — richer, tangier flavour. Feta-style cheese: made elsewhere including Australia, often from cow's milk alone, milder and less complex flavour, more affordable. Both work well in cooking; genuine Greek PDO feta offers the most authentic flavour for Greek dishes specifically.
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Block in brine vs pre-crumbled
Block feta stored in brine: retains moisture and flavour best, firmer texture that crumbles cleanly when you're ready to use it, longest shelf life once opened. Pre-crumbled feta (in a tub, not brine): convenient but dries out faster and loses some flavour intensity once exposed to air. For the best flavour and texture, buy block feta in brine and crumble it fresh as needed.
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Sheep's vs goat's vs cow's milk feta
Sheep's milk feta: richest, tangiest, most traditional flavour — the base of authentic Greek PDO feta. Goat's milk feta: slightly earthier, tangier than cow's milk versions. Cow's milk feta: mildest and most common in Australian supermarkets, less complex flavour but widely accessible and affordable.
🇦🇺 Australian tip: Australian supermarkets stock both local feta-style cheese (Coles, Woolworths own-brand, and dedicated producers like Meredith Dairy and Yarra Valley Dairy) and imported Greek PDO feta, typically at $6–12 per 200g depending on origin and milk type. Melbourne and Sydney's substantial Greek-Australian communities — among the largest Greek diaspora populations outside Greece — have long supported specialty Greek delicatessens carrying authentic imported feta, particularly in Melbourne's Oakleigh and South Melbourne, and Sydney's Marrickville. Meredith Dairy's marinated Australian feta (in olive oil with herbs) has become a well-regarded local specialty product, popular well beyond Greek-Australian households as a premium local alternative to imported feta.
🧊 Storage tips & shelf life
Refrigerator (in brine)
3–4 weeks (unopened); 1–2 weeks opened
Keep fully submerged in brine at all times
Feta stored in its original brine keeps considerably longer than most soft cheeses due to the preservative effect of the salt solution. Once opened, keep any unused feta submerged in the original brine (or make fresh light salted water if needed) in a sealed container, refrigerated at all times. Discard if the surface becomes slimy or develops an off odour beyond the normal salty tang.
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Freezer (in brine)
Up to 3 months
Freeze in brine; texture becomes more crumbly after thawing
Feta can be frozen submerged in its brine, though the texture becomes noticeably more crumbly and slightly drier after thawing — still perfectly usable for crumbling into cooked dishes (pasta, pastries, baked vegetables) but less ideal for salads where texture matters more. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight before using.
Feta's origins in Greece stretch back to antiquity — Homer's Odyssey, composed around the 8th century BCE, contains a description of cheese-making by the Cyclops Polyphemus using methods (curdling milk in animal-skin bags) closely resembling those historically used for early Greek brined cheeses. The name 'feta' itself derives from the Italian word 'fetta' (slice), entering Greek usage sometime around the 17th century to describe the way the cheese was cut into slices for storage in brine barrels — though the cheese-making tradition it describes is considerably older than the name. Traditional Greek feta production uses sheep's milk or a blend with a smaller proportion of goat's milk, aged in wooden barrels or tins filled with brine for a minimum of two months, developing its characteristic tangy, salty, slightly grainy character through this extended brine-curing process rather than through the bacterial-ripening aging used for hard cheeses like parmesan.
In 2002, after a lengthy legal dispute within the European Union (Denmark and Germany, both significant producers of cow's-milk 'feta-style' cheese, contested Greece's claim), the European Court of Justice ruled in Greece's favour, and in 2005 'Feta' formally received Protected Designation of Origin status — meaning only cheese produced in specific regions of mainland Greece and the island of Lesbos, from sheep's and goat's milk according to traditional methods, may legally be labelled 'Feta' within the EU. This ruling does not restrict use of the name in non-EU markets including Australia, where 'feta' commonly refers to the general style of brined white cheese regardless of origin or milk source. Australia's large Greek-Australian community — with Melbourne home to one of the largest Greek populations of any city outside Greece itself, a legacy of significant post-WWII immigration — has long supported robust local demand for both authentic imported and quality Australian-made feta, embedding the cheese firmly in mainstream Australian food culture well beyond its Greek-Australian origins.
Feta may be one of the oldest cheese styles still made today — possibly referenced in Homer's Odyssey around the 8th century BCE
While direct textual evidence specifically naming 'feta' doesn't exist from antiquity (the name itself is a much later addition), the Odyssey's description of the Cyclops Polyphemus curdling milk and storing the resulting cheese in wicker baskets closely mirrors early Mediterranean brined-cheese production methods that historians believe are ancestral to modern feta. This makes feta's production lineage — brining and curing white cheese from sheep and goat milk — potentially one of the oldest continuously practised cheese-making traditions in the world, spanning well over two and a half thousand years in the region.
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Feta's Protected Designation of Origin status followed one of the EU's longest and most contested food-naming legal battles
The dispute over whether 'feta' could legally describe cheese made outside Greece ran for over a decade through European courts, with Denmark and Germany — both established producers of cow's-milk 'feta-style' cheese for export — arguing the name had become a generic style descriptor rather than a protected geographical indication. The European Court of Justice's 2002 ruling in Greece's favour, followed by formal PDO registration in 2005, was seen as a landmark case establishing that traditional food names tied to specific regional production methods and history could be legally protected even against long-established commercial use elsewhere.
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Authentic Greek feta must be made primarily from sheep's milk — cow's milk is not permitted under the PDO rules at all
The EU's Protected Designation of Origin specification for Greek feta requires a minimum 70% sheep's milk, with the remainder made up by goat's milk — cow's milk is not permitted in any proportion for cheese labelled 'Feta' within the EU. This is a meaningful distinction from much commercially available 'feta-style' cheese outside Europe, including a significant portion of Australian-made feta, which is frequently made wholly or predominantly from cow's milk, producing a milder and less complex flavour than genuine Greek PDO feta.
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Greeks eat more feta per capita than any other nation — often as a daily dietary staple rather than an occasional specialty ingredient
Feta consumption in Greece significantly exceeds that of any other country, reflecting its role as a genuine dietary staple rather than a specialty or occasional cheese — commonly eaten daily as part of a simple meal with olive oil, tomatoes and bread, not reserved for special dishes. This everyday consumption pattern contrasts with how feta is typically used in Australia and other Western countries, where it functions more as a distinct flavour ingredient added to specific dishes like Greek salad rather than a dietary staple eaten in large regular quantities.
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Melbourne has one of the largest Greek populations of any city in the world outside Greece itself — larger than several major Greek cities
Substantial Greek immigration to Australia, particularly to Melbourne, from the 1950s through the 1970s established a Greek-Australian community so large that Melbourne is frequently cited as having a Greek population exceeding that of several individual cities within Greece itself. This deep community presence has supported specialty Greek grocers, delicatessens and producers in Melbourne (notably the Oakleigh and Northcote areas) carrying authentic Greek feta and other traditional products for many decades, well before Mediterranean ingredients became mainstream in Australian supermarkets.