Bath & West Food and Drink Festival launches with the Cheese Awards

This year's Bath & West Food and Drink Festival has kicked off - with the tradition of the British Cheese Awards!

Hundreds of cheeses are going on show - with entries from across Great Britain and Ireland - ranging from the traditional to the quirky.

The event happens every year at the Bath and West Showground in Shepton Mallet - and organisers say it's set to be one of the largest ever showcases of cheese across the nation.

The stats

This year marks the 28th edition of the competition - with 63 judges looking over 600 cheese entries.

These include:

• 76 cheddars
• 42 territorial cheeses
• 48 blue cheeses
• 36 soft white cheeses
• 62 added flavour cheeses
• 19 fresh cheeses
• 53 modern cheeses
• 25 new cheeses

In total, there are 81 producers who've made their way to the event:

• 67 from England
• 5 from Ireland
• 3 from Scotland
• 6 from Wales

Organisers of the Bath and West Food & Drink Festival have hailed the British Cheese Awards as playing a 'front and centre' role at the event - adding it gives visitors 'the opportunity to 'view and taste some of the award-winning cheeses' from right across Britain and Ireland.

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