The History of Cheshire Cheese
Cheshire cheese is one of the oldest recorded named cheeses in British history. There has been a long history of making Cheshire cheese on farms around Nantwich.
In the past, milk production was far more seasonal. Lots of milk was produced in the summer months, when there was plenty of grass. Much less milk was produced in the winter, as the hay made then was a poorer feed than the silage made today. The farmers made cheese in the summer, to use up the surplus milk. Salt helped to preserve the cheese.
Nantwich market used to have cheese markets on a Thursday, attracting buyers from
- Chesterfield
- Halifax
- Huddersfield
- Leeds
- Liverpool
- Manchester
- Sheffield
and other areas.
We have been fortunate to have a lot of old cheese making equipment, given to us by local farmers. There are more pictures available here on the Permanent Exhibitions page.
Click here to read about Blue Cheshire Cheese.