Makers of Italian and Mexican style cheeses. In 1973, the de Cardenas family, new immigrants from Mexico saw the opportunity to create a product that was not yet available in the Los Angeles marketplace — queso fresco. They then founded the company and named it “Cacique”. In Latin America, the name signifies the chief of a tribe, the ultimate authority, the very best and the pinnacle of experience. Four decades later, Cacique is the largest fresh cheese maker in the United States and are proud to provide the best selling chorizos in the marketplace.