cheeky cow cheddar cheese

Cheddar maker Cricketer Farm has secured its first national supermarket listing with The Co-op Group for its Cheeky Cow half-fat mature cheese.

From next week, the brand’s 350g block will be available from more than 390 of the retailer’s stores nationwide (rsp: £2.99) - marking the first time the brand has been available outside South West England apart from national spot promotions in Lidl - while another 100 independent Co-operative stores are also expected to place orders.

The listing would more than treble the number of outlets selling the cheese, which was launched in May 2013, said Cricketer Farm MD Greg Parsons.

“Our aim for the brand has always been to provide health-conscious consumers with an everyday Cheddar alternative,” he said. “The growing health agenda surrounding salt and our Department of Health Responsibility Deal commitments therefore meant salt reduction was the next step.”

Parsons added: ” A like-for-like salt replacement product was the solution, helping us maintain the flavour, texture and functionality consumers are looking for in a healthy cheese. This move also meant we had a totally unique product that certainly captured buyers’ attention.”

Alongside the Co-op listing, Cheeky Cow will continue current contracts with Tesco, Asda, Spar and Compass Group. Lidl will also continue to stock Cheeky Cow cheese as a promotional line, following the success of promotions in 2014 and earlier this year.

“The new listing is well timed for the Christmas and new year period,” he said. “It’s also very positive news for our dairy farmers so we’re very excited about the future of the brand and how, in such a short space of time, the cheese has been embraced by the industry and consumers alike.”