Speciality Food Magazine June 2024

specialityfoodmagazine.com 33 M ore than 140,000 people will descend on the Great Yorkshire Show this summer. The four-day event (one of the largest andmost respected in the UK), takes place from9th to 12th July, bringing a celebration of agriculture, food, farming and the countryside to the showground on the outskirts of Harrogate. Fromcattle and showjumping competitions, to state-of-the-art farming equipment, fashion, food and sheep shearing, there is something for everyone at the show, which celebrates its 165th anniversary in 2024. Of particular interest for the fine food sector is the Cheese & Dairy Show, where a cast of stellar cheese experts has been lined up, covering everything fromwhat it takes to judge Britain’s best cheese and dairy entries, to perfect pairings. This section is highly regarded in the industry, having been set up initially in 2002 to help boost dairy businesses in the aftermath of the foot andmouth disease outbreak. The quality and calibre of judges coming fromall across the UK is exceptional this year – fromproducers and industry experts, to commercial buyers. Judging of cheese and dairy classes begins on Tuesday, 9th July, with international cheese judge, Nigel Barden hosting. Nigel hasmore than three decades of foodie knowledge and experience under his belt, with a career spanning BBC radio and TV, appearing at live consumer events and food festivals, judging awards, and working as a restaurant critic and compere. Cheese expert SamWilkin, producer of The Cellarman podcast and TheWestcombe Project, hosts the Cheese & Dairy Show onWednesday. Sam is a judge at theWorld Cheese Awards and hasmademultiple appearances on BBC Radio 4’s The Food Programme, and Food FM’s A Slice of Cheese. Wednesday is presentation day, with prizes awarded for all categories, plus twomemorial trophies given tomark themassive contribution made to the show by David Hartley of Wensleydale Creamery (who passed away in 2020), and Shepherds Purse founder Judy Bell MBE. Judy was chief steward for many years before her death in 2022, and the position has been proudly filled by her daughter Caroline since then. Caroline is delighted to be able to follow in her mother’s footsteps, particularly this year, marking the 35th anniversary of Shepherds Purse, which launched at the Great Yorkshire Show in 1989. She says, “I’ve been involved with the Great Yorkshire ShowCheese & Dairy Show for many years, and 2024 will bemy third year as chief steward. The success of the show is firmly rooted in the incredible team of stewards and judges who all work so hard to improve it each year, with the full support of the Yorkshire Agricultural Society team too. It’s been vital to have such a prestigious show in Yorkshire that showcases not just the best of Yorkshire cheese and dairy (which of course is dependent upon quality dairy farming) but also the best of cheese and dairy fromacross the country and the continent, all on the Yorkshire stage.” OnWednesday the People’s Choice classes will take place in the afternoon, with the first 50members of the audience to volunteer invited to sample two types of cheese and an ice creamentry to pick the winners (who will be announced on Thursday). On Thursdaymeet The Cheese Explorer, Emma Young. Emma is a cheese consultant and author from London. Her debut book, The Cheese Wheel, was released in 2023 and she has been an international cheese judge for the past 12 years. Emma is a garde et jure for the International Guilde des Fromagers, and teaches cheese courses for MonS Formation, The Guild of Fine Food, and the Academy of Cheese. This is the day that the renowned Cheese Auction takes place, with this year’s proceeds going to RABI, which provides expert mental health, wellbeing, financial and practical support to those in the industry. Last year’s auction raisedmore than £5,000 for Herriot Hospice Homecare. Finally, on Friday, Homage2Fromage’s Nick Copland hosts a day of events, activities and interviews, plus a cheese quiz with some tasty prizes. Nick and his friend Vickie Rogerson started Homage2Fromage 12 years ago and have fronted hundreds of events in dozens of locations, celebrating cheese in all its forms. The Cheese & Dairy Show is being supported this year byWensleydale Creamery. Sandra Bell from the creamery says, “As a proud Yorkshire dairy business, Wensleydale Creamery are delighted to be supporting the Cheese & Dairy Show again this year at the Great Yorkshire Show. It’s a fantastic showcase of produce from across the UK and beyond, and it’s great to see this area of the show continue to go fromstrength to strength.” CharlesMills, show director, adds, “Showcasing the best cheese and dairy products from the UK and beyond is one of the best ways to demonstrate the importance of farming to how and what we choose to eat. Visitors will be able to see some of the best dairy animals in the showing rings and then be amazed at the wealth of the range of the end products.” LEADING INDUSTRYNAMESHEADINGFOR 2024 GREAT YORKSHIRE SHOW WHERE: 9th-12th July, 2024 WHEN: Great Yorkshire Showground, Railway Road, Harrogate greatyorkshireshow.co.uk GREAT YORKSHIRE SHOW Expect a packed programme in the Cheese & Dairy section at one of UK’s biggest agricultural events CAPTION CAPTION