Map of North West Food Producers

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Say Cheese!

Assignment 2 - Article 2

Lancashire has been producing cheese for centuries, traditionally by small farms dotted across the county.

Farmer’s wives would use the surplus milk left from the farm and produce cheese to supplement the farm income.

Historical records show that Lancashire cheese was being transported to London from Liverpool by boat as early as the 1600s.

Standardisation

In about 1890 Lancashire cheese was to be reinvented to a form recognised to the present day.

Joseph Gornall, working for Lancashire County Council visited the cheese makers offering practical advice in an aim to standardise, creating a uniform “Lancashire cheese.”

Gornall developed the “Gornall Cheesemaker” in 1892 among other cheese making tools, attempting to make cheese making less labour intensive.

In the early days without refrigeration, milk would be stored overnight and turned into curd, then blended with curds from other days to create cheese.

This method of cheese making has been passed down from generation to generation and is produced by a number of families in Lancashire today.

But why Lancashire? What types of Lancashire cheese are there? Has the credit crunch had any impact on local cheese producers?

Types of cheese

• Creamy Lancashire: Made over three days with three different batches of curd, giving it a fattier flavour. Matured for 5 months, this creates a rich, creamy flavour and a deep yellow colour.

• Tasty Lancashire: The same cheese as Creamy Lancashire, but matured for anything up to 18 months to create a much stronger taste.

• Crumbly Lancashire: The newest Lancashire cheese. Made with just a single day batch of curd and matured for typically 12 weeks. A mild, tangy taste, white in colour and a completely different texture.

Lancashire and the Forest of Bowland

There are ten local producers of Lancashire cheese all within a ten mile radius of the Forest of Bowland.

Tim Procter, of Procter’s Cheeses, Chipping explains: “It’s all to do with the topography of the land. All up the West coast of the UK there are good dairy areas because of the high rainfall creating good grass.”

He adds: “The credit crunch hasn’t affected us yet, October was our busiest month of the year. Maybe people are spending less at restaurants and eating better at home.”



Stuart Robinson, of Singletons Dairy, Longridge said: “About 95% of Lancashire’s cheese is produced within a ten mile radius of here. It’s because there’s a good milk source and good grazing around the Fylde.”

“The credit crunch hasn’t had an impact on us yet, we aim at a specialised market. About 75% of our produce is exported, mainly to America.”

Some cheese producers in the area have noticed a slow down however.

Lynne, of JJ Sandham Ltd, Barton, admits that orders have slowed a little and customers have been slower to pay but they have remained busy in the run up to Christmas.

Diversification

With production of cheese in Lancashire remaining steady Bob Kitching, of Leagram Organic Dairy, Chipping is attempting to diversify.



He said: “We haven’t seen any change in sales as people still have to eat. People think organic cheese is more expensive, but if you take a look around this is not necessarily the case.”

“We’re planning to open a tea room and museum with grants available from Ribble Valley Futures and the tourism board. These have been put on hold though because of the recession.”

A brighter future?

Nick Kenyon, of Dew-Lay, Garstang says the next couple of weeks running up to Christmas will prove to be the “acid test” for them.

He said: “We’re still busy, November quietened off but sales have picked up again in early December. We are trying to save on costs where possible though.”

There are positive signs in the cheese market though. Sales of Garstang Blue, Dew-Lay’s celebrity endorsed cheese have remained high.

Nick added: “Sales of our Garstang Blue have remained really good. In fact blue cheese is one of the few growth areas in the cheese market.”

Lancashire’s cheese producers appear to be dodging the credit crunch better than some industries have done. In my opinion that's definitely worthy of a smile.

Thanks to Richard Moran for the photographs.

Is Lancashire's food industry still fruitful?

Assignment 2 - Article 1

Lancashire has seen its local food industry in recent year’s boom, having been well and truly put on the map.

From celebrity endorsements by chefs such as Jamie Oliver to the successes of local chef Nigel Haworth with Northcote Manor and the television programme The Great British Menu, times have rarely been better.

The county has a rich heritage of producing wonderful local produce such as meat, vegetables and beer but is arguably most famous for its cheese.

Credit Crunch

But with the credit crunch sweeping the globe and the UK recently falling into recession, has anything changed?

Small businesses employ 13.5 million people and have an annual turnover of £1,400 billion, something the government has taken note of stating they “are the lifeblood of the UK economy” and “we have to do everything we can to help.”

However, recent figures estimate that 280 small businesses are closing down every week, so has Lancashire’s local food industry felt the bite?

Ups and downs

Peter Ashcroft, of H&P Ashcroft, Tarleton admits: “We grow a variety of vegetables, but we’re in the November doldrums, it’s always quiet around Christmas. I have extended my overdraft though.”

Andrew Lanigan, a fishmonger of Lanigan’s of Lytham said: “Yes, I’ve noticed a change in the luxury end of the market, particularly lobsters.”

It’s not the food industry that has had the real problems though, the brewing industry seems to have suffered the worst.

Ian Bearpark, of Daniel Thwaites Brewery, Blackburn, says: “The brewing industry has got its own issues at the moment, however the credit crunch has further compounded these problems.”

But it’s not all bad news for Lancashire food producers with many having noticed very little difference at all.

Ian Banks of Eaves Green Game Farm, Goosnargh says: “We’re just about keeping up with demand with Christmas coming. Maybe I’ve just got my pricing right.”

Andrew Sharp of Farmer Sharp, Lindal in Furness, said: “We sell naturally reared red meats; beef, veal and mutton. We sell at the high end of the market so have not felt the effects of the credit crunch. Our major protection is our speciality.”



Gillian Pugh, of Pugh’s Piglets, Garstang, who supplies top chef Raymond Blanc with suckling pig added: “We sell to a very niche market, it’s very difficult to say whether it’s affected us.”

The press hold some blame

Reg Johnson, of Johnson and Swarbrick, Goosnargh said: “There has been no change at the top end of the market. I supply game to some top London restaurants and there’s never a change in demand.”

He adds: “There’s been about a 10% drop in general demand, mainly in the lower end of the market such as cheaper hotels.”

Reg has plenty of ill-feeling towards the press. He thinks that under knowledgeable journalists at tabloid newspapers can “destroy markets” and that “the power of the pen is very worrying.”

Optimism for future

With the credit crunch seemingly had little effect, there is a mood of cautious optimism among some people.

Amanda Dowson, of Mrs. Dowson’s Ice Cream, Clayton-le-Dale, hopes next year will be better. “It’s difficult to say whether the credit crunch has affected us because of the bad weather in the summer.”

She added: “We’ve noticed customers are paying slower, but sales are up on last year.”



John Midgely, of Blundell Farm Salads, Tarleton, is optimistic for the future. “We’re in a niche market, growing decorative salads such as fennel, endive and celeriac.”



“We did really well in the last recession. We are the only people in the North to grow these salads so we did a lot of trade with businesses in Scotland, popular with American and Canadian tourists.”

“With the pound so weak again, there may be a tourism boom next summer. I’m hoping for a better year next year.”

Thanks to Richard Moran for the photographs.

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The Bank of England has recently cut interest rates by a massive 1.5% (the largest cut since 1981), slashing the rate to just 3% (the lowest rate since 1955) in an effort to stimulate the economy. But I wonder, will this dramatic action actually make any difference?

I asked homeowner Richard Cook for his views on such a decisive move.

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There's been a lot of positive talk recently that the credit crunch has peaked and we have weathered the worst of the storm, but are we not getting a little ahead of ourselves?

After all, last Wednesday Gordon Brown uttered the word "recession" for the first time, while on Friday it was revealed that the UK economy had shrunk by 0.5% for the first time in 16 years.

The Bank of England's chief economist, Charlie Bean, has described the turmoil as "possibly the largest financial crisis of its kind in human history." And you can see why.

Banks are still not lending to each other, around 280 small companies are going out of business every week (that's 40 per day), the FTSE is continually sliding, and the Government wants to borrow even more money to help ease the pain. Ouch!

Outside of the UK, the International Monetary Fund has offered significant rescue packages to both the Ukraine and Hungary, in an effort to shore up key Eastern European economies.

The UK's problem is a large one, however Stephen Boyle, a senior economist for the Royal Bank of Scotland believes Lancashire is weathering the storm better than anywhere else in the country.

Speaking at a recent economic breakfast event Mr. Boyle said that the North West was the only region in the country to have witnessed growth in economic output during the last quarter.

He added that the North West can "draw strength" from this news, despite the forecast of a tough 12 months ahead.

But regardless of the optimism, the facts are there to be seen. Unemployment is on the increase, property prices are sliding relentlessly and the Government is fighting to save the battered sterling.

Are we certain the worst is over, or is the UK's economy living on borrowed time?