Police hunt thieves who stole four tons of cheese

Police in France are trying to sniff out about four tonnes of Comté cheese stolen by thieves in the east of the country. On Monday the owner of the Napier dairy in the town of Goux-les-Usiers, eastern France reported a break-in the previous night. Thieves had helped themselves to approximately one hundred wheels of Comté cheese, a specialty of the region of Franche-Comté.

“We heard nothing,” André, who lives next door to the dairy, said. “The people who did this, they must know the area,” The thieves cut through barbed wire before forcing a back door of the building using that basic burglary accessory - the crowbar. In all they made off with around 100 wheels of the cheese, which can sell up to €40 a kilo for a particularly matured Comté.
Estimates say the loot is worth anything from €40,000 upwards. Comté is officially a protected cheese in France after being awarded the Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée, which means it can only be produced in that region. The Montbéliarde et Simmental breeds of cow are the only type that produce the milk that is used to make the cheese, that can spend up to 36 months maturing in a cellar.
Police are focusing their inquiries on recent thefts of large vehicles which may have been used to store the cheese. “With such a quantity, you need a means of transport and a distribution network,” said Daniel Prier, Head of the Chamber of Agriculture for the Doubs region. He added that a text message alert system was being put in place so that potential witnesses could supply information.