Welsh Cheese Stolen In International Fraud

29 Oct 2024

This weekend we were devastated to hear about a huge fraud, which involved the theft of cheese made by two of our cheesemakers, Holden Farm Dairy and Trethowan Brothers. The fraudsters, who posed as buyers for a French supermarket, took delivery of 950 clothbound wheels from London-based wholesaler Neal’s Yard, before the scam was discovered.

The details have been well covered by the media, with Patrick from Holden Farm Dairy appearing on Radio 4’s Today programme this morning, and Jamie Oliver offering his support online.

Thankfully Neal’s Yard have honoured their commitment to pay the producers for the cheese, but it is still a worrying time for these small-scale cheesemakers.

We’re huge fans of Holden Farm Dairy and their Hafod Cheddar. I spent a day with Becky Holden and her team on the farm in July, and as ever I was blown away by their knowledge, skill and commitment to organic, regenerative farming and cheesemaking. We’ll continue to spread the word about Welsh artisan cheese and to try to do our bit to support these fantastic cheesemakers. As Patrick Holden said on Radio 4 this morning, ‘Maybe it’s a wakeup call for us all to learn more about the story behind our food’.

Thank you for continuing to support real food and Welsh artisan cheesemaking.

-Tom