Suffolk Farmhouse Cheeses
Suffolk Farmhouse Cheeses is a family-run business established in July 2004 by Jason and Katharine Salisbury.
Jason has over 30 years experience of the dairy industry, and Katharine is a qualified Veterinary Surgeon.
Following the dispersal of the dairy farm in Coddenham where Jason was herdsman, we decided to follow our dream of running our own dairy herd and producing cheese.
After extensive research and planning in 2004, we began conversions of the existing dairy buildings and installation of cheesemaking equipment. The following 3 years saw an establishment of our venture with a gradual growth in herd size and cheese production.
In August 2007 we bought our own farm 2 miles away in Creeting St Mary and began the planning of the new dairy unit. After obtaining planning permission, we started construction of 2 new dairy buildings, installation of a milking parlour and purpose-built cheese dairy.
The new dairy is situated on a lovely 100-acre farm on the A140, just north of Needham Market. The building works were completed at the end of May 2009 with an official opening on 7th June 2009.
The cows are milked via a state-of-the-art voluntary milking system/ This allows the cows the freedom to choose when to be milked, enhancing their welfare and udder health. It is possible to view the milking system when visiting the farm’s milk vending machine.
The Cows
We are members of the Guernsey society and show our cows at various events including the Suffolk Show, Royal Norfolk and the UK Dairy Day.
We have a small herd of 80 award-winning pedigree Guernsey cows, averaging 50 cows in milk at one time, and 30 followers. Each cow is known by name and individual personality. Kept to the highest standards, every attention is paid to their care. A brand new, very spacious cow shed provides comfortable shelter in the colder months and harsher weather, while the cows have the freedom to graze over lush pastures in kinder weather.
As our voluntary milking system milks the cows, and due to the high quality feed and kind management, the milk produced is luxuriously creamy and lends itself superbly to cheese production. Due to the high butterfat and protein of the milk, the cheese produced has a lovely golden colour with a rich, creamy flavour.
We have all-year round calving to enable a steady milk supply right through the year. The majority of our milk is used for cheesemaking, with small amounts being sold bottled or used for cream, butter and ice cream production.
We are members of the Guernsey society and show our cows at various events including the Suffolk Show, Royal Norfolk and the UK Dairy Day.
Milk Vending Room
Our milk vending machine sells fresh milk daily, allowing customers to reuse glass bottles. Plastic bottles are also available. A separate vending machine sells cheeses, eggs, cream, butter and milk bottles. The vending room is open 7 days a week from 7am to 9pm.
Where to find our cheeses
Our cheeses are available at various local, regional and national outlets, including Farm shops, delicatessens and restaurants.
Farm shop
Our farm shop stocks a selection of locally sourced produce alongside our farmhouse dairy products and meats
We also sell cheese, milk, cream and home-reared beef and pork direct from the farm.
Shop opening hours are:-
Friday & Saturday 10am-5pm
Other hours possible by prior arrangement
We also attend special Easter and Christmas Farmers markets, please contact us for more details.