Employees at the Haverfordwest Creamery are celebrating a clutch of gold, silver and bronze awards for their Pembrokeshire Cheese Company cheddar from this year's prestigious Royal Welsh Show.

The creamery, which is owned by First Milk, the UK's largest farmer-owned co-operative, also scooped a silver and bronze award at the Great Yorkshire Show, topping off a successful 10 days.

Creamery manager, Tim Whittal-Williams, said his team was absolutely delighted at the success.

"It is great for the reputation of the Pembrokeshire Cheese Company to be known as a producer of award-winning cheddar," he stated. "Existing and potential customers both take notice of who's winning the big prizes, so it is important for the profile of our brand to be victorious at these shows."

The creamery is enjoying a successful 2009 cheese show season, winning two silvers and three bronze at the Royal Highland Show and silver and bronze at the Bath and West Show. This brings their tally for the year so far to 15 awards.

The Haverfordwest Creamery, which employs 68 staff, is in the heart of an important producer area for First Milk.

"We have some 300 producers within a 35-mile radius of the creamery, so it is a very tight-knit area. Our members are delighted that they own their own creamery which is right on their doorstep, producing 100 per cent Welsh cheddar using only 100 per cent Welsh milk," he added.

As well as creating the award-winning Pembrokeshire Cheese Company cheddar, the creamery also supplies a number of the key retailers in the UK with private label cheese.

"Regional provenance is important to consumers who want to know where their cheese is coming from - and that they are also supporting local farmers," said Mr. Whittal-Williams.