Police arrest man in connection with £300,000 cheese theft

A man has been arrested in connection with the theft of artisan cheese including wheels of Welsh cheddar. Police investigating the theft of more than 22 tonnes of cheese from Neal's Yard Dairy said they have arrested a 63-year-old man on suspicion of fraud and handling stolen goods in London.

A Metropolitan Police spokesman said: "On Monday October 21, police received a report of the theft of a large quantity of cheese from a manufacturer based in Southwark.

"Investigating officers have since arrested a 63-year-old man on suspicion of fraud by false representation and handling Stolen Goods. The man was taken to a south London police station where he was questioned, he has since been bailed pending further inquiries. Inquiries remain ongoing."

Neal's Yard dairy delivered more than 950 wheels of Welsh cheddar, worth an estimated £300,000, to the alleged fraudster who posed as a wholesale distributor for a major French retailer. The company said it still paid the producers of the Hafod, Westcombe and Pitchfork cheese, so they would not have to bear the cost "despite the significant financial blow".

Hafod West from Neal's Yard Dairy sells for £12.90 for a 300g piece, Westcombe has a £7.17 for 250g price tag and Pitchfork is £11 for 250g. Neal's Yard Dairy asked cheesemongers around the world to contact them if they suspect they have been offered or sold the stolen cheese, particularly clothbound cheddars in a 10kg or 24kg format with the tags detached.

Jamie Oliver also appealed to people to look out for dodgy sales of "posh cheese". The celebrity chef asked his followers on social media to be alert for "lorryloads of posh cheese" being sold "for cheap".

He told his 10.5 million followers: "There has been a great cheese robbery. Some of the best cheddar cheese in the world has been stolen."

Oliver described it as a "real shame", adding: "If anyone hears anything about posh cheese going for cheap, it's probably some wrong'uns.

"Are they going to unpeel it from the cloth, and cut it and grate it and get rid of it in the fast food industry, in the commercial industry? I don't know - it feels like a really weird thing to nick."

Tom Calver, director of Westcombe Dairy in Westcombe, Somerset, produced some of the stolen cheese and said he was "hugely distressed" when he heard about the theft last week. Mr Calver, 42, said: "I was really concerned about what it was and the implications of it.

"Neal's Yard have been fantastic. We are just trying to support them as much as possible by encouraging people to shop with them. "It is a huge, very difficult loss.

"It is ridiculous - out of all the things to steal in the world - 22 tonnes of cheese?" he added, "What it does show, which I am amazed about, is the value people put on these amazing artisan foods."