Artisan Cheese Fair Launches Awards

Being held in Melton Mowbray from 30th April to 1st May, the fair will showcase the work of over 50 cheese makers and offer consumers the chance to buy over 300 cheeses as well as pies, cakes, chutneys, wines and ciders from more than 100 stands.

The awards are open to any cheesemaker in the UK which produces less than 250 tonnes of cheese annually, and the classes being judged are: Soft, Semi-soft, Hard, Blue, Best British Territorial Cheese, Best Protected Food Name Cheese, and Best Cheese Recently Launched on the Market.

Awards will also be awarded to the best goat’s cheese and the best ewe’s cheese, and winner of The People’s Favourite category (judged by the public during the fair) will be announced after the event.

The cheese considered to be the best in the awards will be named Supreme Champion and will win a cheque for £1,000 as well as a trophy.

Matthew O’Callaghan, chairman of the partnership said, “The awards are a natural extension of the fair. It means that small artisan producers can compete on a level playing field without the dominance of the large commercial producers which occurs in some of the cheese awards.”

Paul Carter of sponsors A la Carte Packaging Solutions said, “It gives me great pleasure as the owner of A la Carte Packaging Solutions to be involved as a sponsor of the Supreme Champion of the very first Artisan Cheese Awards. The ‘smaller in volume but producers of top quality products’ are just as important to the diverse cheese market of the UK, and have not only their own cheese show, but now also their own awards to aspire to.

“As the only ‘one stop shop’ for cheese packers both big and small, I have found the cheese people of the UK to be an absolute pleasure to work with. I hope to make acquaintance with more of the special cheese people in the artisan sector as a result of being involved with the show. May I take this opportunity to wish all competitors the very best of luck!”

To enter, download an entry form from artisancheesefair.co.uk. Deadline for entries is 4th April.