Speciality Food September 2025

handcrafted clothbound cheeses.” They’re a brilliant way, Rachael adds, to connect visitors more deeply not only with the food they eat, but also with the cheesemaking process. moments, often with sustainability (something else they value) playing a central role. A burgeoning market in the industry is cheese tourism, withmore andmore cheesemakers opening their doors, warmly welcoming customers and giving them a window into their worlds. QUICKE’S, DEVON EXPERIENCE: CHEESE TOURS Quicke’s launched its cheese tours a decade ago in a bid to share its story with a wider audience, says Rachael Kinsella from the maker’s marketing team. “The tours give our visitors the chance to see the fields where our cows graze, step inside our cheese dairy, explore our ageing rooms, and enjoy a guided tasting of our 44 @specialityfood S ince the Covid lockdowns there’s been a notable shift in the way Brits spend their money – and their leisure time. Consumers, especially Millennials and Gen-Z, crave experiences, storytelling and ‘realness’ above all else in a world increasingly driven by influencers, AI and living online. This has led to a boom in British agritourism, with the IMARC Group predicting the market for on-farm experiences will grow from $73.2 billion in 2024, to $205.6 billion by 2033, and Grand View Research expecting a CAGR rate of 11.9% between 2025 and 2030. From farm stays and farm visits, to PYO and wine and cider tours, the growing agritourism sector gives the public access to authentic, tangible “Now, more than ever, people are curious about where their food comes from, and we love offering this behind-the-scenes experience,” she adds, saying the tours are an “incredibly powerful” sales tool as well. “Every time we do a show, we get people coming up to us to say that they visited our farm on a cheese tour and have been buying Quicke’s cheese ever since!” Tour attendees are always delighted to meet 14th generation Quicke, Mary, when they arrive, who gives a talk, before they’re taken to the cheesemaking rooms, where they can sample Quicke’s cheeses at all stages, from fresh curds, to young Cheddars. The tour also includes a visit to the ageing rooms, where cheeses mature for up to two years, followed by a talk from one of the farm team and the chance to visit cows grazing nearby. “Last, but by no means least,” adds Rachael, “there’s a guided tasting of our range of handcrafted, clothbound cheeses. The experience is rounded off with lunch just down the road at the Beer Engine pub.” Cheese tours at Quicke’s have become so popular the team adds more dates each year, running from April to September, when the weather Food lovers across the UK are more interested in where their cheese comes from than ever before CHEESE TOURISM BOOMS INBRITAIN is usually on their side. “This not only makes for a muchmore enjoyable walk,” Rachael explains, “but also means we can welcome visitors who are holidaying in the SouthWest during the peak tourist season.” She heartily recommends other cheesemakers jumping on the agritourism train. “It’s a fantastic way for people to connect with the craft, understand the care and skill that goes into every cheese, and appreciate the story behind the product. Visitors love to see, smell and taste the process in action. It really does build brand loyalty, inspires word-of-mouth, and can create lifelong customers.” STEVE PARKER CHEESE & WINE, LONDON EXPERIENCE: BIG CHEESE WALKS “I have, over the years, realised that people prefer experiences to gifts,” says cheese expert and author, Steve Parker. “If I said to you, ‘what did your brother or sister buy you for Christmas three years ago?’ you’d probably have no idea, but if I said, ‘do you remember that theatre tour you did at Drury Lane?’ you’ll remember it.” Experiences, and the act of sharing and talking about food, bring people together, Steve adds. “And it also became abundantly clear to me, when I openedmy cheese shop, that people love cheese. They almost have quite a weird obsession with it.” Understanding these three things led Steve to launch his Big Cheese INSIDERS’ ADVICE Rachael Kinsella, Quicke’s: “Our advice would be to keep group sizes manageable so everyone can ask questions and feel involved, make the people on the tour feel special - they have potentially been looking forward to their visit for months and we really do want them to come away having had an enjoyable and educational time.” Suzie Birrell-Gray, Abbey Farm Cottage: “Go for it. You meet some really interesting people who are looking at what they are eating and want to know what they’re putting in their mouths. You can bridge that gap.” Allison Raper, Teesdale Cheesemakers: “Absolutely do it. Speak to your EHO and make sure there are no concerns there – it helps to have a good relationship with them. I’d say offering an experience does generate brand loyalty, and people will come back again and again. We have regular visitors to the cafe who now come here to buy our cheeses and do a tour because they’ve experienced a cheesemaking day with us. Also, because of what we do, we get a lot of word-of-mouth visitors from the glamping side. We find this a Thinking about opening a cheese experience? Here’s what the experts already doing it have to say. great way to market ourselves to people.” Claire Burt, Burt’s Cheese: “I think they are a great way to showcase products and so customers can see what you do and really connect with your products. We’re a small dairy, so having a separate classroom works well for us, hygiene-wise. That’s definitely a consideration. It’s quite functional, but people are there to learn.” Steve Saunders, High Weald Dairy: “It pays to understand your customers, your story, and the core of your business. When you’re doing tours, every one should be individual and different. I would also say we learn a lot from our customers. If we’re doing something new, we can trial it on them and gain realtime feedback which is very valuable.” Sandra Bell, Wensleydale Creamery: “We’re very fortunate that our Wensleydale Creamery Visitor Centre was built on such a strong foundation. For other cheesemakers looking to expand their business in this way, it’s important to understand that it’s not something they will necessarily see immediate fame from. It ultimately comes down to offering something valuable to visitors. If there are a number of similar experiences in the area then you may not have enough to stand out from the crowd. Having the local community on your side is also key. When it comes to starting out, your initial visitors are likely to come from those in closer proximity, and they can be a really useful tool in spreading the word about the experience.”