Jamie Oliver has urged people to be wary of “truckloads of luxury cheese” being sold “for cheap” after hundreds of truckloads of cheddar worth more than £300,000 were stolen from Neal’s Yard Dairy.
The London cheese specialist said he supplied more than 950 wheels of cheddar – more than 22 tonnes – to scammers before realizing he had been duped.
Neal’s Yard said it still paid producers so individual dairies did not have to bear the costs, and is now trying to absorb the financial blow.
In an Instagram post, Jamie Oliver wrote: “If anyone hears anything about cheap cheese, it’s probably the wrong stuff.”
What we know
Neal’s Yard confirmed it had supplied 950 wheels of cheddar to the alleged fraudster who posed as a wholesaler for a major French retailer before realizing what had happened.
The wheels contain three artisan cheddars, including Hafod Welsh, Westcombe and Pitchfork.
The cheese specialist also confirmed that it has still paid producers so they did not have to bear the costs “despite the significant financial hit”.
The police are also working together to identify the perpetrators.
The Metropolitan Police said in a statement: “On Monday 21 October we received a report of the theft of a large quantity of cheese from a Southwark manufacturer. The circumstances are being investigated.”
No arrests have yet been made in connection with the alleged theft.
Neal’s Yard also urged cheesemongers around the world to contact them if they suspect the stolen cheese has been sold to them, particularly linen-bound cheddars in 10kg or 24kg sizes with the tags off.
What we don’t know
The full details of the theft have not yet been fully made public, but one report suggested that the ‘unusually large’ order was placed over the phone by a man claiming to be a legitimate buyer.
According to the Sunday Times, Sarah Stewart, director and co-owner of Neal’s Yard, said they had asked industry colleagues about the buyer and received good feedback, along with a contract that contained “very compelling information”.
We also don’t know who is behind the theft. Some reports suggested the heist may have been masterminded by criminals looking to smuggle the cheese into Russia, as luxury food has been hard to come by since Moscow banned its imports in response to EU sanctions.
Another unknown is where the stolen cheese will end up, and how the people who took it plan to get rid of it.
In his Instagram post, Jamie Oliver raised the question of what would be done with the cheese, asking: “Are they going to loosen it from the fabric, cut it and grate it and throw it away in the fast food industry, in the commercial sector? I don’t know – it feels very strange to steal.”