Thirsk-based artisan cheesemaker Shepherds Purse is enjoying a double celebration this week after winning Supreme Champion Cheese at the Great Yorkshire Show, on top of celebrating its 35th anniversary.
The cheesemaker first launched at the Great Yorkshire Show in 1989 when its founder, the late Judy Bell MBE, took her sheep’s milk ‘feta’ (now Mrs Bell’s Salad Cheese), with mixed responses from farmers who weren’t used to eating cheese made from sheep’s milk.
Fast forward 35 years and for the first time ever at the Great Yorkshire Show, Shepherds Purse has won Supreme Champion for its newly launched Organic Yorkshire Blue cheese.
The judges described the winner as having “a creamy texture with elegant, sweet notes, buttery, creamy, indulgent and well balanced. A well-deserved winner.”
The sisters have dedicated their prestigious win to their mum.
The family’s first organic cheese also won major trophies in the Best Organic Product in Show and Best Yorkshire Product in Show classes as well as Mrs Bell’s Blue securing the Best Blue Cheese in Show trophy – a hotly contested category. On top of these wins there were also six golds, three silvers and five bronze awards for the cheese making family.
Judy famously started the business by making cheese only from sheep’s milk as a way to offer delicious cheese to those affected by allergens. Today, the family dairy is run by Judy’s daughters, Katie Matten and Caroline Bell, who have led the business and its growth since 2012.
The family business has evolved and grown over the years, and it now produces 11 cheeses, made with a variety of milks including sheep, cow, water buffalo, and most recently organic local cow’s milk.
Katie Matten, joint managing director of Shepherds Purse, said: “We are absolutely thrilled to win the Supreme Champion Cheese award at the Great Yorkshire Show and to win it for the first time on our 35th anniversary is beyond special.
“It’s such a fitting tribute to our mum, Judy especially as she’d always wanted to launch an organic cheese. Caroline and I feel proud that we have delivered her ambitions and so this win really does seem like the perfect way to celebrate the journey we’ve been on as a family and a business. Our 35th anniversary feels like a significant milestone after the sadness of losing mum but we now look to the future as we continue to produce our world-class cheeses and to fly the flag for Yorkshire cheesemaking.”
Shepherds Purse has grown its reach with its range of award-winning cheeses Yorkshire Blue, Harrogate Blue, Mrs Bells Blue, Northern Blue, (new) Organic Yorkshire Blue and Mrs Bell’s Salad cheese (originally called Yorkshire Feta until a challenge saw the Greeks awarded a PDO in 2008) featured in the aisles of all the leading supermarkets, independent retailers and cheesemongers across the UK as well as being served in restaurants across the UK and beyond.
Most recently, its cheese is gracing the plates of some of the world’s most famous events, restaurants and travel partners demonstrating that British cheese is hailed as the best in the world.
Its Yorkshire Blue is being ‘served’ at this year’s Wimbledon Tournament, Mrs Bell’s Blue is residing on the menu of five-star hotel, The Ritz and if that wasn’t enough luxury, its cheeses are being served to first class customers on the Midland Pullman, British Airways, Qatar Airways, Emirates and LNER trains.
Caroline Bell, joint managing director of Shepherds Purse, added: “The Great Yorkshire Show feels like home to us so celebrating our 35th anniversary here with colleagues, friends and family is a real joy and privilege.
“It’s exciting to see our cheese being enjoyed on planes, trains and even at tennis tournaments!.
“We are excited to continue the work mum started and we have big ambitions for the next 35 years and beyond.
“We continue to be focused on producing delicious and nutritious cheese which balances the needs of both people and planet and creates a sustainable future for everyone.”
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