Cheester Egg

The Cheester Egg is set to follow the cheese Advent calendar into the mainstream after picking up listings in Asda and Morrisons.

The Blacksticks Blue Cheese egg, developed by Lancashire supplier Butlers Farmhouse Cheeses, is a 117g half egg-shaped orange blue cheese accompanied by caramelised onion chutney and oatcake crackers.

It will go on sale in Asda and Morrisons from 16 March, and follows a poll of Asda shoppers that suggested 60% of consumers preferred cheese to chocolate.

“We’re a nation of cheese fanatics, so we know consumers will love the Cheester Egg,” said James Clapham, commercial manager at Butlers.

The Cheester Egg is made at Wilson Fields Farm with pasteurised cows milk from the Butler family pedigree herd. The cheese is described as creamy, and “a perfect sweet and savoury match”.

“It’s going to be a fantastic year for blue cheese as people are increasingly adventurous all year round,” added Matthew Hall, another commercial manager at Butlers. “Three generations of my family have been making cheese, but nothing quite like this before.

“What is always the same is the fact we are involved in every step of the process right back to the cows, which are all local to us.”

The Cheester Egg is the latest NPD tapping into the trend of replacing chocolate for cheese during special occasions, and comes as Norseland announced the launch of a cheese bouquet ahead of Mother’s Day. The £30 bouquet features eucalyptus, ruscus and thlaspi as well as 25 mini Jarlsberg cheeses and 10 packs of Peter’s Yard biscuits.

Last Christmas, Asda was the exclusive stockist for the So Wrong It’s Nom Cheese Advent Calendar, which was launched by Norseland in collaboration with food blogger Annem Hobson, after her home-produced version of the Advent calendar sparked a social media frenzy ahead of Christmas 2016.