Record year for Dale Farm in International Cheese Awards
Dale Farm, Northern Ireland's biggest dairy business, scooped a record number of awards at this year's International Cheese Awards at Nantwich.
The company, owned by United Dairy Farmers, Northern Ireland's biggest farmers' co-operative, secured a cluster of awards for its cheeses, yoghurts and dairy drinks at the prestigious global competition.
The annual show, held near Chester, attracted a record 4,592 entries from all over the world.
Dale Farm has processing operations in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Great Britain.
The main operations in Northern Ireland are at Cookstown in county Tyrone, the centre of cheddar cheeses, and Fivemiletown, also county Tyrone, where it produces speciality cow's and goat's milk cheeses. It also produces butter and other dairy productsat Ballymena in county Antrim.
Dale Farm's haul of medals included six golds.
The awards won by the Northern Irish dairy business were:
* Vintage Cheddar (white or coloured): Silver
* Irish Cheddar (white or coloured): Silver
* Mild Cheddar (white or coloured): Bronze
* Mature Cheddar (coloured): Very Highly Commended
* Extra Mature Cheddar (white or coloured): Very Highly Commended
* Soft Cheese with savoury additives: Gold
* Goat's Milk Cheese (other than hard pressed): Very Highly Commended
* Soft/semi soft Cream Cheese: Gold
* Carton of Cottage Cheese (plain): Gold
* Carton of Cottage Cheeses with additives : Gold, Silver, Bronze, Very Highly Commended
* Drinks with Health Benefits that contain Dairy Ingredients: Gold, Silver, Bronze
* Cheese with 100% Goat's Milk: Silver
* Sliced Cheese: Bronze
* Carton of Yoghurt Cow's Milk: Bronze
* Carton of Fruit Flavoured Yoghurt Cow's Milk: Gold, Silver, Bronze
* Group of Four Yoghurts (any flavour): Bronze
* Carton of Qark, Fromage Frais: Silver, Very Highly Commended
The number of entries in the cheese awards surpassed last year's figure of 4,443, with the 80,000 sqft cheese tent also having to be enlarged by a further five metres to accommodate the produce, as well as the 100 plus exhibitors - another all-time record.