Innovation That Leaves a Lasting Impact
Butlers Farmhouse Cheeses is a farmhouse cheesemaker based in rural Lancashire. Butlers has been handmaking British hard, soft and blue cheese for 90 years and today, brothers and fourth-generation owners, Matthew and Daniel Hall run the business.
Butlers supply all major UK retailers and have their own online cheese store, where cheese is delivered nationwide, direct from the dairy to your front door.
In 1932, the Butler family farm expanded into cheesemaking and has remained a vertically integrated cheese producer since then. A pioneering spirit of innovation, sustainability and social responsibility is at its heart.
It was early generations of the Butler family that drove its sustainable mantra, even though phrases like “sustainability” were not widely used at the time. As Matthew and Daniel’s great-grandparents used to say, “keep that, it might be useful one day.”
One of many ways that the Matthew and Daniel drive the spirit of sustainability today is in its packaging. Butlers is the only cheesemaker in the UK to develop 100% recyclable packaging for hard, blue and soft cheese – no mean feat when you think that cheese is a living, breathing product – even when on shelf in the supermarket.
While recycling infrastructure still has a journey to go, Matthew and Daniel’s view is that innovating its packaging now is “the right thing to do for the long-term”. It embodies what makes a family business unique – strategic planning and decision-making that has an impact for decades to come, rather than short-term tactics that are relevant today and forgotten tomorrow. “We work with our retail partners, employees and the local community with that long-term view and wider impact piece in place,” says Matthew.
In addition to packaging, Butlers ensure there is minimal time, distance and impact in what they do. The majority of their milk is sourced from the extended family herd of cows and goats within a 10-mile radius of the dairy. All cheese is then handmade and matured under one roof, ensuring low costs, emissions and food miles, while also supporting local farmers. “It also makes for absolutely delicious cheese!” says Matthew.
Matthew and Daniel’s great-grandparents’ values and that of subsequent generations, has inspired their commitment to the wellbeing of their community. Matthew Hall says that he wants to “provide for our extended family,” which includes the local community, staff, and suppliers.
Beyond pioneering new ways to be sustainable, the company supports their local community in a number of other ways including sponsoring the local Blacksticks Blue 10K run to raise money for the local school. It has also installed superfast broadband in Inglewhite to help people in the community get online with the speed that those living in more urban areas might take for granted.