Hawes Creamery, the home of Wallace and Grommit branded Wensleydale cheese, has acquired Fountains Dairy. The purchase gives Hawes md David Hartley the much-needed packing and cheesemaking capacity he would otherwise have needed to build at Hawes. The Hawes creamery can make 1,500 tonnes a year and operates a thriving visitor centre. Hartley is planning for a further 2,500 tonnes a year in the Fountains site, just 33 miles away. A key factor for Hartley was the blending and packing facitities at Fountains' Kirkby Malzeard site. His combination cheese plant at Hawes, makes Wensleydale with cranberries and is at full stretch. "Things have come full circle: Hawes and Fountains were sister sites in Kit Calvert's Wensleydale empire and now they've come together again," said Hartley. {{NEWS }}

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