Melton Mowbray: Future of historic dairy site in town under review

Arla Foods Tuxford and Tebbutt Creamery, in Melton Mowbray, employs about 60 people

A historic dairy in a Leicestershire town will continue to operate while a "strategic operational review" is carried out.

Tuxford and Tebbutt Creamery, in Thorpe End, Melton Mowbray, which has been producing Stilton since 1780, employs about 60 people.

Arla Foods, which owns the dairy, said it was looking for potential buyers for the site during the review.

It said there would be "no impact to supply" during the review period.

The company said on Monday it would be "exploring the market for any buyers" for the creamery.

The site would remain open and there would be no change to production, customers, or employees during this uncertain time, it added.

'Reassure shoppers'

Vice-president of production, Fran Ball, said: "We understand the announcement will bring a sense of uncertainty for those who work at Melton Mowbray and those who work directly with the site team.

"Over the last few years, the speciality cheese market in the UK, which includes Stilton, has continued to decline, and as a farmer-owned cooperative, we are therefore looking at what this means for our business so we can continue to return a fair price back to our 2,000 UK farmer owners.

"We'd like to reassure shoppers that there will be no impact to the supply of our products, during this review period."

Ms Ball said the company was "committed to supporting all colleagues through periods of change", adding there would be an update on the review by April.

The company, which has production facilities in 11 countries, is the largest dairy cooperative in the UK.

The cooperative is owned by about 8,492 dairy farmers worldwide, with about 2,053 of them being British.

Its products are sold under the brands Arla, Lurpak and Castello in more than 100 countries.