British cheese exports are set to hit a record high this year as the world gains a taste for a traditional British product. The latest figures from HMRC show that as of September UK cheese exports have risen by 8.2%. Cheese production for 2014 will be in the region of 400,000 tonnes, with about 130,000 tonnes exported. “Exports have been gradually increasing over the years and, in part, that’s due to increased milk production,” says Nigel White, head of trade body the British Cheese Board. “The bulk of these exports are commercial cheeses, which are sold to businesses. But while premium exports such as mature cheddars, Stilton and speciality cheeses form a minority, they produce very good returns.”

“The UK has had a chequered past with cheese making,” says White. A lack of milk during the inter-war and post-war periods meant the UK was heavily dependent on imports. From the 1930s, the government controlled production and supply to ensure the masses had a decent diet. Dairy farms, which had to sell their production to the Milk Marketing Board, struggled to create their own cheeses. “We’ve never produced enough milk in this country. Ever since the repeal of the Corn Laws, UK farms have had to compete with world prices when nearly every other country has quotas,” says White.

Many of the UK’s burgeoning artisan cheese makers are creating products based on centuries old recipes. The domestic market, however, is dominated by big supermarkets and massive food companies competing on price, and is not an easy place for small and medium sized businesses to operate. In order to protect their bottom lines, cheese makers and creameries are therefore turning to exports. “Exports are also a response to a very competitive domestic market, it’s a tough one to operate in,” says White. “The supermarkets are very powerful and so margins have been squeezed. Small makers have gone to a lot of trouble to export as they see it as a way to offset the risk.”

The Bath Soft Cheese Company, set up in the 1993, is a traditional maker who is now looking abroad. Its Bath Cheese is based on a recipe which has been around since the 1790s and was even a favourite of Lord Nelson. Owner Hugh Padfield, who has 13 employees, says his £1.1m business makes about 50 tonnes of cheese per year. Although the company only exports about a tonne of this, Padfield sees exports as key to growth. “We have expanded in the past five years. Once you’ve got to the point where you have supplied all your local shops and delis it becomes quite difficult to expand in the UK. During the next year, we want to increase our production and sell more through exports. We are hoping exports will become around 10-20% of our sales.”

Even larger independents are finding it tough in the UK. Rich Clothier, managing director at family-owned Wyke Farms, employs 200 staff at his £65m business. Even so, Clothier says they are a “minnow” compared to other suppliers. “In relative terms, we are a small business,” he says. “It’s difficult for us to get the retail space and it’s tough for independent businesses to fight against the financial muscle of the big European businesses.”

Part of the company’s business strategy has therefore been to diversify its sales market, a strategy which is having a powerful effect. During its last financial year, export sales were £4.3m, but the run rate for the current year suggest sales of around £10m. One of the main drivers of this growth is that Wyke’s vintage mature cheddar has found favour across the channel with our cheese loving neighbours, the French. Wykes now has a listing with Carrefour, France’s biggest supermarket, and Clothier has personally spent a lot of time in the country conducting tastings with consumers. “In the past, the French have turned their noses up at English food, but that’s changing. They appreciate mature English cheddar and understand how it works with wine,” says Clothier. “Carrefour is our biggest export listing to date and we are enormously proud of it.”

This trend extends beyond Europe, with English cheese now finding favour across the world. The North American market is strong, although it is protected by quotas and different regulations.

Catherine Meade, owner of Lynher Dairies, has maintained a good line of business with the US for the past decade. The 30-strong business produces Yarg cheese, a unique Cornish product made from the milk of Friesian Cows, is wrapped in nettles and garlic leaves to mature. Meade says demand for her product is so strong overseas, she’s unable to match it with supply. “We’ve been exporting Cornish Yarg for ten years now and demand for the product continues to grow year on year. It remains a challenge for the dairy, but we recognise the huge potential of the export market and so seek to meet the demand as best we can,” she says. “Our core export market is the States, but we also have interest in Australia. We sell a certain amount to Europe and we are seeking to develop this market because the speed with which we can get the product to Europe is good for us, and for the cheese.”

The Wensleydale Creamery, based in Yorkshire, is also well-established in the US, its biggest market. Exports make up about 15% of the company’s £25m annual turnover, but recently it signed deals with 18 different buyers in Singapore and Kuwait and has more Asian deals in the pipeline. Export manager Janette Scarth says the business has hired two more people to work solely on overseas trade and expects more deals soon. “In the last 12 months, we’ve focused on exports as a strategy for the business. We recently returned from China, where we got a great reaction.”

Other cheese makers have also noted the growing taste for British cheese in parts of the world not usually associated with dairy. Padfield says as his business expands, he hopes to take advantage of this. “Developing nations that haven’t got into dairy in the past are getting more into it now,” he says. “They are very interested in the provenance. The UK is seen as old, traditional and high quality, so it’s a natural place to go for cheese.”

Read more stories like this:

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The British breweries taking over the world

Cultural complexity: the etiquette of doing business abroad

Manufacturers power West Midlands’ export success

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