One of Britain’s oldest cheesemakers closes its doors after 200 years

After more than two centuries of producing blue Stilton, Britain’s oldest Stilton cheese maker is about to close its doors for good.

Tuxford & Tebbutt, the famed creamery in Melton Mowbray, will auction off its machinery and equipment next week, bringing an end to a long history of cheesemaking.

Founded in 1780, Tuxford & Tebbutt became known worldwide for its blue Stilton.

After struggling to find a buyer, its owner, ARLA, announced last year that the creamery would be shutting down.

Now, Eddison’s auctioneers have been tasked with selling off the factory’s machinery, equipment and fixtures in a 400-lot auction, expected to fetch up to £200,000.

The final chapter for this historic brand is set to be written on March 6th.

Eddison’s director Paul Cooper said: “Tuxford & Tebbutt were internationally famous for producing a very fine blue Stilton that was made to an 18th-century recipe, using traditional skills, but the equipment they used to do it was constantly updated and improved. We haven’t found any antique kit in the factory – not a single piece.

“The quantities of cheese being manufactured on the site at any one time were quite breathtaking.  Just one of the storage areas had a capacity of 25,000 ten-kilo blocks of Stilton, about 250 tons. So there is a lot of racking and shelving and then all the wrapping, packing, labelling and check-weighing machinery.”