From the Normandy coast to the heart of England is a well-trodden path for Isigny Sainte-Mère’s cheesemakers. This time, though, the occasion was shared with cheesemakers from all around the globe at the World Cheese Awards.

Birmingham has been an export destination for Normandy dairy products since the days when steam power first started supplying the UK’s urban centres with food in the nineteenth century. This particular trip had a competitive edge, however.

The Isigny team came away with no fewer than seven medals, which is no mean feat. Indirectly, they were up against about 3,000 cheeses grouped up into more than 600 classes for the different panels to assess.

Over the past 15 years, Isigny Sainte-Mère has won more than 200 medals in competitions around the world. The cooperative’s head office has one wall of its stairwell covered with its most recent awards.

Look out for WCA medal winners in your local cheese shop: there is room for diversity in world class products. Here are the Isigny medal winners:

Isigny Sainte-Mère came away with seven medals in the 2010 World Cheese Awards