When was the first cheese factory established?

Although cheese has been made in England for many centuries, the nation’s first cheese factory was established just over one hundred years ago. By the mid 1930s there was a positive glut of cheese making farms--although they have decreased somewhat in recent years. There are innumerable varieties of cheese produced in England today. In the past goats’ milk was favoured but these days cows’ milk is usually used in the manufacture of cheese products. Cheeses such as Cheddar, Lancashire and Cheshire are still made by traditional methods, using milk produced on the maker’s farm or local cheese farms. Some of them are independently graded and carry the "Farmhouse English Cheese" mark as a guarantee of quality. There has been much renewed interest in cheese making in England, which has resulted in the development of new cheeses and the re-appearance of old favourites. Many are made on farms or smallholdings, and can be purchased locally from specialist cheese shops. For example, Exmoor and Coleford Blue from the West Country, and Beamish and Swaledale from the North.