Christmas Business Boost at the Wensleydale Creamery

Dec 16, 2009

The Wensleydale Creamery, at Hawes in the Yorkshire Dales National Park, is producing 50% more cheese units in its Christmas production output this year.

It will produce 1.7 million more additive cheeses than it did during the same period last year due to a new all year round business win and a Christmas uplift. This has led to an employment boost at the company, the only maker of Wensleydale cheese in Wensleydale, with the recruitment of 28 seasonal employees – eight more than last year. A general uplift in business has meant that it has also recruited five extra full-time staff taking its total number of employees over the Christmas period to 221. Extra shifts have been introduced with The Creamery working round the clock for at least two months to meet the demand for its cheese in the run-up to December 25. The business is on target to make more than two million units including waxed cheese truckles and varieties for special festive gift packs.

David Hartley, The Wensleydale Creamery’s Managing Director, said: “This Christmas will be our busiest ever with us up 50% on last year’s festive production figures.

“The Creamery is proud of how much it contributes to the local economy and it is, therefore, good to see that we have needed to take on more seasonal workers than in 2008 to meet the rise in demand for our cheeses.

“I believe this puts us on a very firm footing for 2010 when we are expecting to get a decision on our application for Protected Designation of Origin status and as we spread the word of our “Making Provenance Matter” campaign.”

Go Back