The great cheese robbery - 18th November 2024

It may seem like something that you'd see in a film, but thieves have robbed 22 tonnes of cheese from a dairy in London!

The 950 cheeses, which were stolen from Neal's Yard Dairy, have a combined value of £300,000.

The cheeses were three speciality varieties of cheddar: Hafod, Westcombe and Pitchfork. One organiser of the World Cheese Awards described them as "the Canalettos or the Stradivarius of the cheese world."

The thieves' plan began in July, when they contacted Neal's Yard by email. They pretended to be from a leading European cheese distributor. The email, which went to managing director Sarah Stewart, said they were ordering cheese for a French supermarket chain.

Over the following months, the thieves built a relationship of trust with Stewart and, by the end of September, 950 wheels of cheese had been delivered to their warehouse. However, they never paid Neal's Yard a penny.

Global interest in English cheese has been growing recently. Produce from smaller companies with experienced cheesemakers is in high demand. Although some experts believe that the cheese was stolen for a client in Russia or the Middle East, getting it there could be a challenge.

The cheeses are made from raw milk and will go off if they aren't kept chilled. Unless it's moved quickly, the cheese will end up in the bin or sold at a bargain price.

Because the cost of the theft would send the small producers bankrupt, Neal's Yard has paid its suppliers and taken the financial hit itself.