The Evolution of the British Cheese Industry Nigel White November 2018 ii Copyright of the Society of Dairy Technology First published November 2018 ISBN: 978-0-900681-12-7 i Contents Preface 1 1. Summary 2 2. Cheese before the Roman invasion 5 References and further reading 6 3. The Roman era – What did the Romans ever do for cheese? 7 References and further reading 8 4. The post-Roman era 9 The Norman Invasion 9 Diets in feudal Britain 10 Medieval Britain 11 References and further reading 12 5. The dissolution of the monasteries and its aftermath 13 Enclosures 13 Cheesemaking 14 Cheese in the diet 17 References and further reading 17 6. The Corn Laws and the industrial revolution 18 The Corn Laws 18 The industrial revolution 19 Cheese production levels and quality 21 References and further reading 21 7. The main British cheeses at the turn of the 20th century 22 English cheeses 22 Cheddar cheese 22 Cheshire cheese 24 Stilton cheese 25 Leicestershire 25 Wensleydale cheese 26 Lancashire cheese 27 Gloucester cheese 28 Derby cheese 28 Soft cheeses 28 Scottish cheeses 29 Scottish Cheddar 29 Dunlop 29 Fresh cheeses 29 Welsh cheese 29 Caerphilly 29 Other British cheeses 29 References and further reading 30 8. Cheese production statistics on at the turn of the 20th century 31 Production of cheese 31 Retail sales and prices 32 References and further reading 33 9. The First World War 34 References and further reading 36 10. Post WW1 – the 1920s 37 Market analysis in the 1920s 39 Cheese production statistics 1924/25 40 Data on UK cheese production and imports 41 Structure of the retail market for cheese 44 Cheese preferences outside of London 45 ii Contents (continued) Conclusions of the MAF report on Cheese 46 Trade issues facing the dairy sector 46 References and further reading 47 11. Major changes in the 1930s 48 The National Mark Scheme 49 Pricing of milk for cheese 50 Agricultural marketing reforms 50 The creation of the Milk Marketing Boards 52 Effects of the schemes on cheesemakers 53 Milk supplies after the setting up of the MMBs 56 Cheese production by type of cheese 57 Imports 58 Exports 59 Cheese consumption 60 Summary of events in the inter-war years 60 References and further reading 61 12. The Second World War 62 Government takes control of the food chain 62 Milk availability 63 Milk used for cheese 64 UK Cheese production, imports and exports 1923 – 1946 65 What of other foodstuffs? 66 References and further reading 67 13. Post WWII – the long recovery 68 Re-instatement of the MMBs' Powers 69 Production of cheese in the 1950s 70 Imports of cheese in the 1950s 71 Off-take 71 References and further reading 72 14. Expansion in the 1960s 73 Farmhouse cheese making 73 Private dairy companies 74 The MMBs 75 Cheese production and imports during the 1960s 76 The Cheese Regulations 78 References and further reading 78 15. The 1970s – brighter times ahead and accession to the European Economic Community 79 Accession to the EEC 79 Economic uncertainty and inflation 81 The extent of consumer price increases 83 A change of government thinking 84 Farmgate prices for milk 85 Sales of milk off farms during the 1970s 86 UK cheese production in the 1970s 87 UK cheese production by type 87 Developments in the cheese markets in the 1970s 89 A decision on the future of the MMBs 91 Trade deals 92 Imports of cheese in the 1970s 93 The promotion of cheese 94 The health debate 95 Changes in consumption and production in the 1970s 96 Changes in the structure of the retail market during the 1970s 97 iii Contents (continued) Summary of changes in the 1970s 98 References and further reading 98 16. The 1980s 99 Dairy Crest is born 100 Handling the increased milk supply in the UK 101 Increasing surpluses in the EEC 102 Milk quotas introduced 102 Production of cheese Lymeswold 103 Farmhouse cheese 104 Imports of cheese 105 Exports of cheese 105 Estimated domestic disappearance of cheese in the 1980s 106 Cheese usage in the home 108 References and further reading 109 17. The 1990s 110 The winding up of the MMBs 110 Effects of the breakup on the market 111 Rationalisation, mergers and acquisitions in the cheese world 113 The 1990s in figures 115 Cheese production 115 Imports of cheese 115 Exports of cheese 116 Domestic disappearance of cheese 117 References and further reading 118 18. Speciality cheesemakers and the quests for quality and profit 119 The rise of the artisan cheesemaker 119 The quest for flavour 121 Promoting cheese in the 1990s and beyond 122 The British Cheese Board 123 Protected food names 124 UK protected cheese names 124 Consumer attitudes to cheese at the turn of the century 125 References and further reading 126 19. Market instability in the 21st century 127 The 21st century in figures 129 Cheese production 130 UK cheese imports in the 21st century 131 UK exports of cheese 132 Off-take of cheese 133 Consumption of cheese in the 21st century 134 Key changes in the cheese industry in the 21st century 136 The re-emergence of a two tier pricing system for milk 136 Corporate activity and the growth of farmer controlled busnesses in the cheese sector 137 Market segmentation and the growth of mature Cheddar 138 UK consumption compared to other countries 139 References and further reading 143 20. Progress in specialist sectors of the cheese industry 145 West Country Farmhouse Cheddar 145 The Mozzarella story 145 The Stilton story 146 Blended cheese 147 148 iv Contents (continued) Goats' milk cheeses 148 Sheep's milk cheeses 149 References and further reading 149 21. The future outlook for the British cheese industry 150 Appendices 152 A. Abbreviations 152 B. Inflation 1750–2011 154 C. Examples of advertisments in magazines before WW2 156 D. The National Mark Scheme for Empire Foods 159 E. The Cheese Regulations 161 F. Milk pricing of milk in the transitional period 165 G. Summary of British Cheese Board market Research data in the 1990s and 2000s 167 H. Per capita consumption of cheese in selected countries 170 I. Summary of key data on UK Cheese production, imports, exports and offtake 171 J. The UK’s protected name cheeses 175 1 Preface The British cheese industry is one of the most successful and significant parts of the British food sector. It is a key supplier to the UK cheese market, which is worth some £4 billion a year, cheese ranking as one of the nation's most loved foods. This monograph aims to explore the development of the British cheese industry from pre-Roman times through the ages to the present day highlighting the key turning points that have helped or hindered its development. It has been a far from straightforward evolution with many shocks caused by political decisions (or indecision), the industrial revolution, major economic depressions and changes in technology not to mention the impact of various wars. It has also had to contend with changes in the way that food is produced, transported and sold, changes in the way that consumers buy food and throughout the gradual increase in the population of these islands and its ever improving prosperity and health over the last 2000 years or so. The fate of cheese making has been closely linked to events affecting milk production and the demand for liquid milk. Liquid milk has always been a priority market generating higher returns than those generally available from manufactured milk products – particularly as government policy for so many years actively encouraged the consumption of liquid milk. No excuse is made for dwelling on those broader issues and events that affected the level of milk production in the UK and the liquid milk market and hence the availability of milk to make cheese. I have used the term British in the title of this monograph as cheesemaking was barely visible in either Southern or Northern Ireland until after the Second World War. Both are now major cheese making areas and references are made to them in later chapters. But the story really relates to what happened in Great Britain. For those wishing more detail on the development of the dairy industry in Northern Ireland a recently published book by the Ulster Historical Foundation by (the late) Dr George Chambers and Dr Ian McDougall (The Origins of the Dairy Industry in Ulster) will meet that need. I am neither a historian nor a cheesemaker but have written this as someone who has been fascinated by the magic that is cheese and as someone who has spent much of his life working with cheesemakers in various roles. A large part of my career has been involved in either analysing the industry as an economist or promoting cheese as a marketer. I joined the MMB in 1971 as a trainee economist and spent 8 years analysing the international markets and helping to formulate policy options, then headed up the market research area before being appointed Strategic Planner in 1981 and subsequently, after the introduction of milk quotas, became Divisional Director of Sales and Marketing in 1984 and Operations Director in 1988. I left the MMB in 1990 and set up my own consultancy to advise food companies on their marketing and business strategy. In that role I acted as Secretary of the Stilton Cheese Makers' Association from 1993 to 2015 and Secretary of the British Cheese Board from 1995 to 2015. It has been a privilege to try to educate our consumers and the media they follow about all aspects of this wonderful food.