A NEW cheese room has been unveiled – and there's hopes to have it on west Dorset shelves by next month.

Hollis Mead Organic Dairy in Hooke has launched its brand new cheese room - it was opened by West Dorset MP Chris Loder.

The room was created so that Hollis Mead could expand to making and selling cheese, using the milk it produces. The farm hopes to be selling brie as early as July and cheddar by Christmas.

The cheese produced will be sold in a number of vendors across Dorset including Millers Farm Shop, Norden Farm, Combe Farm Shop, Monkton Elm Garden Centre and Hunt's Supermarket.

Oliver Hemsley, the man behind the project, said: “We can now start experimenting with what cheeses work with our delicious natural milk, aiming to be selling brie by July and cheddar by Christmas. We’re determined that it’s a slab of Hollis Mead organic cheddar that makes the cut on the Boxing Day platter.”

Mr Loder said: “I’m delighted to support Hollis Mead that showcases the very best of Dorset dairy produce. Hollis Mead is a brilliant dairy that leads the way with traditional and sustainable production. If you want to help the environment, buying local dairy produce is the way to do it."

He added: “Hollis Mead is a first class example of a traditional dairy farm business that has diversified and thrived in the current climate and I hope the new cheese room will enhance this success even more to provide a brilliant milk and cheese, produced here in West Dorset.”