THE Wensleydale Creamery at Hawes has invested £360,000 in new machinery – and it’s paid off after winning another large contract with a leading national food retailer.

The Wensleydale Creamery has won the contract to supply Waitrose with own label blended cheese to its stores nationwide.

The business, which will add about £1m to The Wensleydale Creamery’s annual turnover, follows the installation of the new ‘state of the art’ cheese blending, cutting and packing equipment at a cost of over £360,000.

Using their vast cheese blending knowledge and expertise, The Wensleydale Creamery has worked closely with Waitrose to develop the range of cheese recipes.

David Hartley, The Wensleydale Creamery’s Managing Director, said: “This contract, with one of the country’s best-known quality retailers, will continue the sound progress of business at The Wensleydale Creamery and make our cheeses available to an even wider audience.”

“The substantial investment in new machinery forms part of our plans to further develop The Wensleydale Creamery for the good of the business, its workforce and the surrounding rural economy.”

Chris Dawson, cheese buyer at Waitrose, said: “We are very passionate about the quality, authenticity and origin of our cheeses and are committed to sourcing products that meet these requirements. We were impressed by the great taste, texture and provenance of the cheese made at The Wensleydale Creamery and are delighted that our customers will now be able to find more of their produce on our shelves.”

David Hartley added: “The Wensleydale Creamery prides itself with combining traditional cheese making methods along with the creation of new innovative and tasty cheese recipes.”