The owner of the famous Wensleydale Creamery has sold the company to a world-leading dairy firm.
Lactalis has announced that it has reached a definitive agreement with Canadian dairy group Saputo to acquire its UK dairy division, including Wensleydale Dairy Products cheeses.
The North Yorkshire operation, based in Hawes, makes more than 20 cheeses and uses milk from more than 40 local farms. It also employs more than 200 people.
The new deal means the French family-owned company will become the leading supplier of cheddar and butter and spreads across the UK.
Its offerings will include Cathedral City and Davidstow cheddar cheeses, Yorkshire Wensleydale, Country Life butter, and Clover and Utterly Butterly spreads.
The deal is expected to close by the end of the first quarter of 2027, subject to approval. Reports online suggest it is worth £988m.
Saputo, which bought Wensleydale Dairy Products in 2021 in a £23m deal, employs approximately 1,300 people and operates five production sites, one being the Hawes site.
Saputo’s other current sites are in Davidstow in Cornwall, Nuneaton in Warwickshire, Kirkby in Merseyside, and the Isle of Bute in Scotland.
In its latest financial year, the business generated revenues of €800 million.
Producing approximately 4,000 tonnes of cheese, the Wensleydale Creamery is a major provider of local jobs in the area.
The site contributes £12m to the local economy each year and is also home to one of the top tourist destinations in the Yorkshire Dales.
In December 2013, its Yorkshire Wensleydale cheese even achieved European Protected Geographical Indication status to stop it being imitated.
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Wensleydale cheese was previously packed at a site in Kirkby Malzeard, but this has since closed and operations shifted to Nuneaton in Warwickshire.
Emmanuel Besnier, chairman of Lactalis, said: “This acquisition marks a key milestone in Lactalis’ development in the United Kingdom.
“By welcoming famous brands and recognised expertise into the group, we are strengthening our position in the UK market and reaffirming our commitment to providing consumers with high-quality dairy products.”
The Northern Echo has contacted Wensleydale Creamery for comment.