The smooth, fresh and creamy flavour of Ardsallagh goats cheese, the sweet and nutty taste profile of Corleggy and that distinct salty hit of Cashel Blue. When it comes to Irish farmhouse cheese, we are spoilt for choice. However, many readers will remember the days when the choice came down to red or white cheddar, or even Easy Singles.
With Brexit ahead, in whatever form it comes, there are fears about the future of Irish cheese as the UK takes half of our cheese exports every year. Farmhouse cheese, however, appears to be in a more stable position due to the value that is placed on taste and provenance of place. And a lot of that stability is down to the solid foundation that was laid when pioneers such as Veronica Steele of Milleens and Jane and Louis Grubb of Cashel Blue started their own small businesses in the ’70s and ’80s.
Building a foundation
Speaking to Irish Country Living, Kevin Sheridan, co-owner of Sheridan Cheesemongers says: “It was a slow evolution at that stage in the game and small cheesemakers were bolstered with support from chefs such as Myrtle Allen who were willing to put Irish cheese on their menu, as well as small speciality shops such as McCambridge’s in Galway.
"In fact, a lot of support also came from the UK and France because they had that consumer appreciation for farmhouse cheese. In the ’70s and ’80s, farmhouse cheese wasn’t part of our culture. It was part of the French culture though.”
Things started to turn around in the ’90s though. Irish people were travelling more, enriching their palate, and when the boom hit, there was a lot more speciality food shops and high-profile restaurants promoting Irish cheeseboards. In fact, even when the recession hit, sales of farmhouse cheese didn’t plummet like other industries. That’s because there was a strong loyalty to Irish food during that time, and farmhouse cheese is quintessentially Irish. Consumers felt a connection to it in a way that they don’t with other products.
That’s because, farmhouse cheese is all about three things; the taste, the people and the provenance, and there is real transparency in the Irish model. Each artisan cheese is unique to its cheesemaker, and each cheesemaker has a story to tell. What is unique and special however, also makes it fragile and vulnerable.
Bright future
“I must admit that a few years ago, I was nervous about the future of the Irish farmhouse cheese industry,” says Kevin.
“I remember saying to my brother Séamus: ‘Are we just lucky to be running a cheese business during a unique time? Are we in the middle of a perfect storm with exceptional cheeses coming on to the scene with fantastic people behind them?’ Because you have to remember that so much of it is personality-driven.
“Sometimes, companies are working on such a small scale that if the cheesemaker dies or they cease trading, the cheese dies with them. But then we saw second-generation cheesemakers take over from their parents, in the likes of Mileens. And new enthusiastic cheesemakers continue to grab our attention such as Dan Hegarty who is making Templegall Cheese and Mike Thomson behind Young Buck’s Cheese, so I am much more confident than I used to be.”
Model for success
In order for the industry to continue on a healthy path, a multi-tiered system is seen as the way forward.
There is real value in the micro-producer who is operating at a small level, that might just be selling locally to a few farmers markets and local shops.
Stepping up a scale, there are the brands that sell nationally to speciality stores and restaurants while on another level, there are the cheesemakers selling nationally to the multiples and maybe a few speciality stores in the UK. It is only the small few that have a worldwide presence.
This triangle model works successfully for France because a real support system exists. For example, the tiny cheesemaker that might only be producing in small quantities may be just the one that is getting on the menu of Michelin-starred restaurants and making the newspaper headlines as a result, thus giving publicity to the provenance of the cheese and potentially, other bigger brands in that area. There is a place for each of them, and that’s how we need to view them, a point that Kevin Sheridan says state bodies such as Bord Bia need to focus on more, rather than primarily focusing on the scaleable, exportable brands.
Trading on taste
This model will be important when tackling challenges down the line such as Brexit. As mentioned earlier, 50% of Ireland’s cheese exports, of which 83% is cheddar, are destined for the UK. However, the more branded a cheese is, the more it is protected against the unpredictability of international trading.
Kevin says: “An unbranded cheese that is being sold into the food service industry to make sandwiches or lasagnes in the UK, is much more susceptible because this cheese can be easily sourced elsewhere. It trades on its price value. However, when a consumer is buying cheese because of the flavour, and the provenance and the brand, the impact will be much smaller, it’s far less replaceable. People aren’t making their purchase based on price alone and this will be key to the future success of the Irish farmhouse cheese industry.
“What will impact these small producers will be the increase in paperwork because they don’t have the economies of scale to have someone in the office to deal with the extra workload.”
So if this weekend you’re determined to support the industry and have your fill of quality Irish farmhouse cheese, there is just one more thing to be cautious of and that’s labelling. Don’t be confused with speciality cheese. Just because it is a fancy cheese that has a few cranberries or herbs in it doesn’t mean it’s farmhouse cheese. Cais, the Irish Farmhouse Cheese Makers Association, maintains a listing of its members on www.irishcheese.ie and to be a member the producer must use local milk and be crafting the cheese in a traditional manner in small batches, adhering to all regulatory requirements. It’s well worth checking out as there is a very good chance you’ll taste the difference.
The smooth, fresh and creamy flavour of Ardsallagh goats cheese, the sweet and nutty taste profile of Corleggy and that distinct salty hit of Cashel Blue. When it comes to Irish farmhouse cheese, we are spoilt for choice. However, many readers will remember the days when the choice came down to red or white cheddar, or even Easy Singles.
With Brexit ahead, in whatever form it comes, there are fears about the future of Irish cheese as the UK takes half of our cheese exports every year. Farmhouse cheese, however, appears to be in a more stable position due to the value that is placed on taste and provenance of place. And a lot of that stability is down to the solid foundation that was laid when pioneers such as Veronica Steele of Milleens and Jane and Louis Grubb of Cashel Blue started their own small businesses in the ’70s and ’80s.
Building a foundation
Speaking to Irish Country Living, Kevin Sheridan, co-owner of Sheridan Cheesemongers says: “It was a slow evolution at that stage in the game and small cheesemakers were bolstered with support from chefs such as Myrtle Allen who were willing to put Irish cheese on their menu, as well as small speciality shops such as McCambridge’s in Galway.
"In fact, a lot of support also came from the UK and France because they had that consumer appreciation for farmhouse cheese. In the ’70s and ’80s, farmhouse cheese wasn’t part of our culture. It was part of the French culture though.”
Things started to turn around in the ’90s though. Irish people were travelling more, enriching their palate, and when the boom hit, there was a lot more speciality food shops and high-profile restaurants promoting Irish cheeseboards. In fact, even when the recession hit, sales of farmhouse cheese didn’t plummet like other industries. That’s because there was a strong loyalty to Irish food during that time, and farmhouse cheese is quintessentially Irish. Consumers felt a connection to it in a way that they don’t with other products.
That’s because, farmhouse cheese is all about three things; the taste, the people and the provenance, and there is real transparency in the Irish model. Each artisan cheese is unique to its cheesemaker, and each cheesemaker has a story to tell. What is unique and special however, also makes it fragile and vulnerable.
Bright future
“I must admit that a few years ago, I was nervous about the future of the Irish farmhouse cheese industry,” says Kevin.
“I remember saying to my brother Séamus: ‘Are we just lucky to be running a cheese business during a unique time? Are we in the middle of a perfect storm with exceptional cheeses coming on to the scene with fantastic people behind them?’ Because you have to remember that so much of it is personality-driven.
“Sometimes, companies are working on such a small scale that if the cheesemaker dies or they cease trading, the cheese dies with them. But then we saw second-generation cheesemakers take over from their parents, in the likes of Mileens. And new enthusiastic cheesemakers continue to grab our attention such as Dan Hegarty who is making Templegall Cheese and Mike Thomson behind Young Buck’s Cheese, so I am much more confident than I used to be.”
Model for success
In order for the industry to continue on a healthy path, a multi-tiered system is seen as the way forward.
There is real value in the micro-producer who is operating at a small level, that might just be selling locally to a few farmers markets and local shops.
Stepping up a scale, there are the brands that sell nationally to speciality stores and restaurants while on another level, there are the cheesemakers selling nationally to the multiples and maybe a few speciality stores in the UK. It is only the small few that have a worldwide presence.
This triangle model works successfully for France because a real support system exists. For example, the tiny cheesemaker that might only be producing in small quantities may be just the one that is getting on the menu of Michelin-starred restaurants and making the newspaper headlines as a result, thus giving publicity to the provenance of the cheese and potentially, other bigger brands in that area. There is a place for each of them, and that’s how we need to view them, a point that Kevin Sheridan says state bodies such as Bord Bia need to focus on more, rather than primarily focusing on the scaleable, exportable brands.
Trading on taste
This model will be important when tackling challenges down the line such as Brexit. As mentioned earlier, 50% of Ireland’s cheese exports, of which 83% is cheddar, are destined for the UK. However, the more branded a cheese is, the more it is protected against the unpredictability of international trading.
Kevin says: “An unbranded cheese that is being sold into the food service industry to make sandwiches or lasagnes in the UK, is much more susceptible because this cheese can be easily sourced elsewhere. It trades on its price value. However, when a consumer is buying cheese because of the flavour, and the provenance and the brand, the impact will be much smaller, it’s far less replaceable. People aren’t making their purchase based on price alone and this will be key to the future success of the Irish farmhouse cheese industry.
“What will impact these small producers will be the increase in paperwork because they don’t have the economies of scale to have someone in the office to deal with the extra workload.”
So if this weekend you’re determined to support the industry and have your fill of quality Irish farmhouse cheese, there is just one more thing to be cautious of and that’s labelling. Don’t be confused with speciality cheese. Just because it is a fancy cheese that has a few cranberries or herbs in it doesn’t mean it’s farmhouse cheese. Cais, the Irish Farmhouse Cheese Makers Association, maintains a listing of its members on www.irishcheese.ie and to be a member the producer must use local milk and be crafting the cheese in a traditional manner in small batches, adhering to all regulatory requirements. It’s well worth checking out as there is a very good chance you’ll taste the difference.
This is a subscriber-only article
SHARING OPTIONS: