Melton dairy's equipment set to be auctioned off

The historic Stilton cheese producer – which operated latterly as Arla Melton Mowbray Creamery – closed down after manufacturing its last batch of cheese in December.

The factory has traded since 1780, initially in the production of Melton pork pies, and its closure was blamed on falling sales for speciality cheeses.

The site is up for sale, the 60 employees were made redundant and now an auction is being conducted to sell off machinery, equipment, fixtures and fittings – there are 400 lots and it will conclude at 1pm on Thursday March 6.

Auctioneers, Eddisons, is carrying out the sale and their director Paul Cooper said: “Tuxford & Tebbutt were internationally famous for producing a very fine blue Stilton that was made to a 18th century recipe, using traditional skills, but the equipment they used to do it was constantly updated and improved.

"We haven’t found any antique kit in the factory - not a single piece.

“The equipment going under the hammer ranges from the creamery’s three huge milk silos – steel jacketed tanks each capable of holding 77,500 litres – which are expected to make in excess of £30,000, through to the enormous settlement tanks used early in the cheese-making process.”

Also up for auction are thousands of cheese moulds, along with piercers, cutters and a range of specialist equipment, some of it bespoke-made for the factory.

Mr Cooper commented: “The quantities of cheese being manufactured on the site at any one time were quite breath-taking.

"Just one of the storage areas had a capacity of 25,000 10-kilo blocks of Stilton, about 250 tons.

"So there is a lot of racking and shelving and then all the wrapping, packing, labelling and check-weighing machinery.”

Speaking about potential buyers, he added: “Previous UK dairy industry auctions that we’ve staged have attracted bidding from around the world, every continent with the exception of Antarctica.

"So the interest could come from almost anywhere.

“The wrapping, packing, weighing equipment is expected to attract particular attention because that state-of-the-art kit has uses across a wide variety of food manufacturing processes.

“The factory also has equipment that was used to pack cheese into the Tuxford & Tebbutt ceramic jars in which some of their Stilton was sold.

"That could well be of interest to smaller speciality cheese producers.”

Equipment and machinery can be viewed by appointment only at the Thorpe End site, from 10am to 4pm on Tuesday March 4.

Click HERE to see the catalogue online.

The catalogue is available at auctions.eddisons.com/auctions.

The site produced cheese and Melton Mowbray pork pies until the mid-1960s, when the dairy concentrated on just making Stilton.

It’s closure means Long Clawson Dairy is now the only remaining Leicestershire Stilton producer.

The company's managing director, Bill Mathieson, told the Melton Times last year that the firm had a 10-year sales growth plan for its speciality cheese.

The Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) for Stilton cheese requires it to be made in Leicestershire, Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire to a specific recipe.

Colston Bassett Dairy, Cropwell Bishop Creamery and Shirevale (cropwell Bishop) produce it in Nottinghamshire and Hartington Creamery in Derbyshire.