The Calderdale Cheese Company, of Hubberton, Sowerby, has been shortlisted in the 2008 Yorkshire Rural Awards in the food and drink category.

David and Robyn Heap were granted approval to make cheese in 2007 and are the only cheese-makers in Calderdale.

They said they were delighted to have been put forward.

"I was really shocked when I heard. We didn't even know we had been nominated," said Mrs Heap.

"We're really looking forward to the ceremony. Just to be nominated is fantastic."

The couple's herd consists of just 11 cows, each with their own name.

They used to sell milk but said the price they were receiving for it was low and branched out into cheese-making to stay in the dairy sector.

They created the cheese using a recipe found hidden in their farmhouse which dates back over 250 years.

Now they sell two kinds - Calderdale Crumbly and Calderdale Creamy.
Their cows are fed on naturally-grown meadow grass in summer and hay in the winter.

David and Robyn will join the rest of the nominees at a gala awards evening in Harrogate on Thursday, May 22.

The awards are organised by the Dalesman magazine and dedicated to the Yorkshire countryside and were set up to highlight the people and businesses who are leading its rural revival.