Stithians Parish Council (SPC) helped celebrate an outstanding year for Lynher Dairies Cheese Company. Members of SPC were invited to tour the dairy of one of the largest employers in the parish.
Lynher Dairies were celebrating the launch of their newest, award winning cheese “Kern” as well as being selected to appear in the 2017 edition of The Parliamentary Review – a government publication that flagships the very best practice in British businesses.
Intended to celebrate excellence and to raise standards, the prestigious document is sent out to tens of thousands of leading policymakers and businesses, showcasing British food producers and manufacturers at the very top of their game.
Most cheeses in Britain are known by their generic name, like Cheddar or Stilton. Yarg, is one of the few known by its brand name. Wrapped in stinging nettles, this iconic cheese was first made 33 years ago by Alan Gray in his kitchen on the edges of Bodmin Moor, its name being the backward spelling of his own. Still made by hand, production now takes place in a purpose built dairy near Pelean Cross. Wild Garlic Yarg followed to much acclaim and Lynher Dairies’ newest cheese, the handsome black waxed Kern, won Best English Cheese at the British Cheese Awards whilst still in development.
In 1990, Lynher Dairies was producing 25tonnes of cheese. By 2000, production was at 100tonnes. The move to a new bespoke dairy not only offered more space and capacity but also met the ever more exacting industry standards of food safety. Today, it produces more than 250 tonnes of cheese annually (10% of which is exported to the USA) and provides employment for 30 people locally.
Councillors Phil Blease and Claire Sylvester after their tour