There are many local products based on sheep, goat or cows milk available from the High Weald, including fresh milk, cream, hard and soft cheeses, yoghurts, ice cream and flavoured milk drinks.In particular, there is a wide range of locally and traditionally made cheeses to choose from.
Cheese making is based on warm milk to which acid-producing bacterial cultures and a coagulant (rennet or lactic acid), has been added.
This turns the milk into two components - a more solid curd and a watery fluid called whey. Slabs of curd eventually form and are first pressed and then packed into containers where the cheese is left to mature. The duration and type of storage in terms of temperature and humidity have to be controlled and will vary according to the cheese being produced. Herbs and other flavourings may be added to the cheese whilst a bacterium is added to produce the mould characteristic of blue cheese.