‘The nice cheese heist’: Jamie Oliver slams ‘stunning’ scammers for stealing 22 tonnes of cheddar from fashionable London dairy
Jamie Oliver has blasted scammers accused of stealing more than 22 tonnes of premium cheddar from a trendy London dairy after posing as a French supermarket.
Neal’s Yard Dairy in London mistakenly sent 950 wheels, worth £300,000, to the fraudsters thinking they were a legitimate wholesale distributor.
The company said it had still paid Hafod, Westcombe and Pitchfork, the producers of the cheese, despite ‘the significant financial blow’.
Responding to the news on Instagram, celebrity chef Jamie said: ‘In a shocking turn of events, Neal’s Yard Dairy has fallen victim to a brazen heist of epic proportions.
Celebrity Chef Jamie Oliver slammed the alleged scammers on his Instagram story
Jamie called for help to track down the fraudsters responsible for the cheese scam
‘A staggering 22 tonnes of premium Cheddar, worth £300,000, have vanished, leaving the cheese world reeling.’
‘Cheese enthusiasts are advised to be wary of suspiciously large quantities of premium Cheddar on the black market,’ he added.
‘Remember, if the deal seems too gouda to be true, it probably is! Let’s find these cheese stealers.’
Neil’s Yard Dairy said it is working with police to identify the suspects of the theft dubbed the ‘Grate Cheese Robbery’.
They have also called out to cheesemongers around the world to contact them if they suspect they have been sold the stolen cheese – clarifying that the clothbound cheddars come in a 10kg or 24kg format with the tags detached.
‘The theft involved a fraudulent buyer posing as a legitimate wholesale distributor for a major French retailer,’ a spokesperson for the company said on Instagram.
‘Over 950 wheels of Hafod, Westcombe, and Pitchfork Cheddar were delivered before the fraud was discovered.
‘Despite the significant financial blow, we have honoured our commitment to our small-scale suppliers and paid all three artisan cheesemakers in full.’
A screengrab from Jamie Oliver’s Instagram story slamming the theft
Responding to the news on Instagram, celebrity chef Jamie said: ‘In a shocking turn of events, Neal’s Yard Dairy has fallen victim to a brazen heist of epic proportions’
The Metropolitan Police are currently investigating the theft but no arrests have been made so far.
A force spokesperson said: ‘On Monday, October 21, we received a report of the theft of a large quantity of cheese from a manufacturer based in Southwark.
‘Enquiries are ongoing into the circumstances.’
