Feeling hot, hot, hot...

It's been a long, tough summer so far in the littlest cheeseshop. The cheeses have coped, just about, but there have been times that I've dreaded stepping in behind the counter, or getting behind the wheel (why, oh why did I get leather seats?!)

The parched fields across the UK tell a worrying story too, with most livestock brought into barns early and going on to the feed that was supposed to see them through the winter. Yields are down almost across the board, with some farms facing the awful prospect of trying to sell some of their herds - or worse, culling them - just to be able to feed the rest. There's a very real possibility of severe milk shortages impacting cheesemakers in the coming months.

But there are glimmers of hope, too. Farms that had switched to herbal lays are reporting that their fields, although still suffering in the drought, are holding up better than pasture fields - as well as the long established boon to biodiversity, this ancient practice could be part of the answer to surviving the growing challenges facing the farming industry, and by extension, the world of cheese.