Cheesemakers’ Webcam Captures World’s Imagination

The website cheddarvision.tv has proved to be a real winner with viewers across the world. Since its launch on 1 January 2007 a staggering 280,000 visitors have logged on to the round-the-clock webcam site to watch a handmade-on-the-farm West Country Farmhouse Cheddar maturing.

The brainchild of West Country Farmhouse Cheesemakers, a group of 13 farmers in the South West of England, the site has attracted fans from the four corners of the globe. The Cheddar cheese featured will develop a covering of green mould slowly over the next 12 months and surfers won’t have to miss a single moment.

The star of cheddarvision.tv already has over 100 friends linked to its myspace site and has been invited to a wedding in April.

Philip Crawford, chairman of the West Country Farmhouse Cheesemakers group, explains: “We’re very proud of our cheese and we launched the new website to let the whole world appreciate just how long it takes to create the perfect-tasting West Country Farmhouse Cheddar.

“We thought a few die-hard cheese lovers might find the site of interest, but the response has been overwhelming. It just goes to show that people know a good thing when they see it…and that there can’t be much else on the telly at the moment.”

The West Country Farmhouse Cheddar featured is one of just 14 UK products to carry the prestigious Protected Designation of Origin status, ranking it alongside world famous food and drink treasures such as Champagne, Parma Ham and Cognac.