Fontina
Fontina is a semi-soft aged cheese that develops notable histamine levels during its weeks to months of ripening.
Fontina is typically aged for at least a few months, which gives bacterial activity time to build histamine in the cheese.
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Ripening process — during aging, bacteria convert the amino acid histidine into histamine; the longer the ripening, the more histamine accumulates
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Compared to harder cheeses — Fontina is semi-soft and not aged as long as a Parmesan or aged cheddar, but levels are still typically high enough to matter
Fresh mozzarella or ricotta are much younger alternatives that tend to sit at the lower end of the histamine scale.
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For educational purposes only. Not medical advice. Consult a healthcare professional for personal guidance.
References
- SIGHI Food Compatibility List — SIGHI (2026)
- Histamine and histamine intolerance — Maintz & Novak (2007)
- Histamine Intolerance: The Current State of the Art — Comas-Basté et al. (2020)
- Low-Histamine Diets: Is the Exclusion of Foods Justified by Their Histamine Content? — Sánchez-Pérez et al. (2021)
- Histamine Intolerance: Symptoms, Diagnosis, and Beyond — Jochum (2024)
- Guideline on management of suspected adverse reactions to ingested histamine — Reese et al. (2021)