In most cultures, the history of producing cheese is inextricably linked to survival – to making ends meet or preparing for a long, harsh winter. In the Republic of Ireland, for example, farmers have long struggled to get a good price for their milk, so making cheese is a natural way of both preserving milk so it can get to market and adding value along the way. In Northern Ireland however – well, things are a little different. Farmers here have almost always managed to make a decent living from their milk, and making the range of dense, creamy butters for which Northern Ireland is known for was as far as they needed to go in order to make a living. As a result, says Mike Thomson of Mike’s Fancy Cheese, there has never been a real history of making cheese in Northern Ireland. ‘In Arcadia Deli where I worked in Belfast in my early twenties, we sold local meats, fish and vegetables – but the cheeses all came from the Republic of Ireland or the rest of the UK.’
There was no need for cheese – or at least none that was widespread enough to warrant the production of it on any scale other than household. ‘Cheese and butter have been kicking around here for thousands of years, of course – legend has it the Queen of Ulster was killed by a slingshot of cheese in her eye – but not in a commercial, territorial way,’ says Mike. There were no cheddars in Northern Ireland; no Lancashires or Cornish Yargs: just farmers making enough for their families in a stocking above the fire when they happened to have milk left over. ‘In England everything is a territorial; wherever you are in France, the names of the cheese are based around the region. In Northern Ireland, you’re at a loss as to where you start, what you call your cheese, where you make it – and how to get it out there in a market dominated by familiar British names.’