Gold for Fivemiletown Cheese at International Awards

Fivemiletown Creamery has secured a series of major awards for its speciality cheese and recently launched ice cream at international shows in England.

The creamery, Northern Ireland's leading speciality cheese processor, gained the awards at this week's prestigious International Cheese Show at Nantwich and the Great Yorkshire Show in Leeds.

At Nantwich, Fivemiletown gained the highest award possible, a Gold award and was also Very Highly Commended in the 'Soft or Cream Cheese with Additives' category.

The company also gained a bronze award for its Ballyoak cheese in the Naturally Smoked Cheese category and was very Highly Commended for its fruit ice cream.

The creamery's soft cheese and ice cream have already won major awards from the influential International Dairy Federation, the global industry organisation.

This year's competition at Nantwich, now in its 115thyear, saw 226 categories in all, with competitors from 27 countries. The event attracted3,927 entries in all, a record. The winners were chosen by a panel of 156 judges. The event is among the most important events of its type in Europe.

Fivemiletown's unique Boilíe Goat's Cheese also won the Best Cheese with Added Flavour category at the Great Yorkshire Show and then went on to win its class and was named the Reserve Champion, effectively runner-up in the overall event.



Jayne Hickinbotham, top judge at the Yorkshire show, described the Boilie as "a delicate balance of cheese and oil - excellent product" .

"All the ingredients worked so well together - it makes a good talking point on a cheese board."

Peter Dunlop, Fivemiletown Creamery's marketing manager, commenting on the company's latest international success, says: "These awards recognise the outstanding quality and innovation of our cheese and ice cream.

"They strengthen our market standing as an international leader in the development and marketing of exceptional dairy products and support our focus on driving sales that ensure good returns for our network of farmer suppliers who provide the high protein milk for our cheese and ice cream."

Fivemiletown Creamery, established in 1898 as a farmers' cooperative in Tyrone's Clogher Valley, has been exporting dairy products since 1900. The company now sells speciality cow's and goat's cheese throughout Europe, to the USA, Hong Kong and the Middle East.

The creamery employs 90 people and has a network of around 80 dairy farmers supplying milk from across Northern Ireland.