Factors Associated with Retail Price Variation in European Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) and Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) Cheeses

European Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) and Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) cheeses represent a diverse sector in which geographical origin, production rules, species, territorial context, and market orientation shape product value. This study aimed to examine product, territorial, and market factors associated with variation in estimated retail price among European protected cheeses. A cross-sectional product-level dataset was constructed using 253 PDO and PGI cheeses registered in the EU geographical indication system. The dataset combined information on country, production region, species, production volume, territorial characteristics, registration status, market orientation, and estimated retail price. Retail price, expressed in €/kg, was analysed using a generalised linear model with a normal distribution and an identity link. The mean estimated retail price was 17.85 €/kg, with a range of 7.00 to 30.00 €/kg. Cow-milk cheeses represented 51.8% of the dataset, followed by mixed/other cheeses, sheep cheeses, and goat cheeses. The model was statistically significant overall (p < 0.001), indicating that the selected explanatory variables were jointly associated with estimated retail price. Higher estimated retail prices were associated with silage prohibition, mountain location, goat milk, and older registration age, whereas export dependency was negatively associated with price. Cow cheeses were significantly cheaper than mixed/other cheeses, while goat cheeses were significantly more expensive. These findings suggest that protected cheeses are economically heterogeneous and that estimated retail price is associated with more than protected status alone. Production constraints, territorial embeddedness, species identity, and market orientation were all associated with price differentiation. This study provides an exploratory quantitative basis for understanding value formation in the European protected cheese sector.