4,500 Cheeses were sent from 28 countries to be judged by 264 judges. Such as the well-known cheese master Ann Keymeulen, but also Regula Ysewijn, known from Bake-off Flanders.
The cheeses were tasted blind per category and the three best cheeses per category were awarded gold, silver or bronze. A points report was drawn up for each cheese, from which a number of cheeses received a Super Gold award. A select club of 16 renowned jury members were then allowed to choose one top cheese from the Super Gold selection. Houtland Aschekaas came in second, after a blue-veined cheese from a small artisanal cheese factory in Norway.