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Protected Food Name application to launch at Aboyne Games.

Scotland's dairy sector gets another welcome boost, with Food Secretary Richard Lochhead launching a bid for Cambus O’May cheese to be granted Protected Food Name (PFN) status recently.

The official application launch took place at the Aboyne Highland Games and, if successful, will see Cambus O’May cheese join a growing list of popular iconic Scottish products including Scotch Beef and Arbroath Smokies.

The Cabinet Secretary said recently:

“Scotland is world-famous for our wonderful food and drink, and people want to know they are buying the real deal. Achieving PFN status for Cambus O’May cheese will ensure that consumers at home and abroad have a one hundred per cent guarantee of the product’s authenticity.

“Cambus O’May is an unpasteurised cheese, with a recipe that dates back for generations, and is the only one of its kind in Scotland. It is very fitting that they launch their PFN application today, which is the start of Delicious Dairy month as part of the Year of Food and Drink celebrations.

“We already have a growing number of Scottish foods, including other home-grown cheeses such as Orkney Scottish Island Cheddar and Traditional Ayrshire Dunlop Cheese, which are protected under EU legislation and free from imitation. It guarantees the food’s provenance and supports local producers.

“The PFN scheme can benefit producers of brands synonymous with Scotland by providing them with recognition of their product and safeguarding it from imitation, and I would encourage more producers in Scotland to look at taking this forward.”

The unpasteurised cheese is made by Alex Reid of the Cambus O’May Cheese Company. The cheese is made the same way that Alex’s mother Barbara used to make it, and is hand-pressed using two different curds. The resulting cheese, which matures over a couple of months, has a marbled effect and a uniquely creamy texture.

The company has decided to apply for Protected Food Name status to preserve and promote the sixth generation family recipe, and hope to be able to celebrate Cambus O’May in the same way as Scotland’s other 14 Protected Food Name products.

Alex Reid said:

“Achieving PFN status for our signature Cambus O’May cheese will not only put our company firmly on the world cheese map, but also the North East of Scotland.

“As a boy our raw milk, two day curd cheese was an important part of our healthy, additive-free diet, as with most farms in the area. The cheese was lost for a generation in the 1960s but PFN status would more than herald its successful return.

“Launching the application at the Aboyne Highland Games is particularly fitting as we first launched the cheese at the Games in 2009.”

Morag McBeath, Games Secretary of the Aboyne Highland Games said:

“The Aboyne Highland Games is delighted to support the launch of Cambus O’May’s Protected Food Name application in this Year of Food and Drink. It is another example of the fantastic produce we have here in Aberdeenshire.”

Patrick Hughes from Think Local said:

“Cambus O’May cheese is a product with so much history, and Think Local is delighted to support the company with its Protected Food Name application. It is vitally important that we continue to encourage producers to use the PFN scheme as it provides legal protection against imitation throughout the EU, and also heightens brand awareness of products with genuine authenticity and provenance. This in turn means consumers can buy with confidence knowing that they are purchasing the real thing.”

Cambus O’May was at the Aboyne Games, Saturday August 1st, Aboyne Green, 10.30am-5.30pm
www.aboynegames.com

Notes To Editors

More on the PFN scheme: http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Business-Industry/Food-Industry/national-strategy/rep/PFNs