A legendary local cheese manufacturer had to issue an urgent recall notice on Christmas Day due to a possible E. Coli contamination.
Mrs Kirkham’s Lancashire Cheese Ltd took the precautionary step to recall its cheese products which could contain the dangerous bacteria.
The north west producer’s cheese products are the stuff of legend and will have been heading for countless cheeseboards around the UK.
But households were warned by the Food Standards Agency that if they had purchased items from Mrs Kirkham’s, it should not be eaten.
Instead, the public have been advised to contact the retailer they brought the cheese from and to keep it safely wrapped and not in contact with other foods.
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The affected batches date all the way back to those purchased from 1 October 2023.
Mrs Kirkham’s has said it’s now left ‘in limbo’ as they wait for testing laboratories to reopen from the Christmas break.
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The business assured customers last night that its products go through ‘rigorous and thorough testing’ but that there are new testing techniques that aren’t yet industry standards, and it’s those new techniques that detected possible E. Coli.
Symptoms associated with E. Coli include severe stomach cramps, diarrhoea, and vomiting, with some people experiencing a mild fever. Some infections are severe or even life-threatening. Which isn’t very festive.
The notice from the Food Standards Agency said: “Mrs Kirkham’s Lancashire Cheese Ltd has taken the precautionary step of recalling various Lancashire Cheese products because the products might contain E. Coli.
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“The cheeses are sometimes sold as a full block or served as individual portions, it may have been provided as part of a hamper you’ve purchased or been gifted. In some cases it’s been sold as part of a charcutier grazing platter.
“It may not always be clear whether you have purchased an affected product. If in doubt, consumers are advised to contact the retailer they bought their cheese from to find out if the cheese they have purchased is from the businesses and batches affected and, in the meantime, to not eat the product and ensure it is stored safely, fully wrapped and not in contact with other foods.”
Mrs Kirkham’s wrote yesterday: “Good morning to all our customers and followers, further to reports in the media released this morning, we have taken the difficult decision to recall all of our products. This is a precautionary measure, based on information we only received around yesterday teatime.
“Whilst at this time, there has been no testing carried out on our products by the FSA to confirm any suspected risks, we feel it is our duty to recall our products.
“We are working very closely with our local Environmental Health Officers and the Food Standards Agency to fully understand the situation, and whether our products have been correctly implicated.
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“Our modern and purpose built facility here at Mrs kirkham’s, is accredited to the Safe And Local Supplier Approval + cheese (SALSA) standard, and as a member of The Specialist Cheesemakers Association we are careful to always adhere to their code of best practice within our business.
“This recall relates to new testing techniques designed to better identify potentially dangerous strains of Shiga Toxin producing E.coli. Unfortunately, these new testing techniques are not currently industry standard. As a result, despite rigorous and thorough testing throughout our production processes, the potential risk to product safety was not previously identified.
“We are now unfortunately in a state of limbo until testing laboratories reopen and resume testing. As soon as they do, together with the FSA we will investigate further.
“Due to the ongoing and uncertain nature of this situation we would advise our customers to be aware that a recall has also been issued for several other unrelated products.
“We would like to assure all our customers that as we have more information, we will be posting updates on the situation here. We apologise for any inconvenience caused at such an important time of year.
Inside Kouba, Deansgate Square’s stunning new Lebanese restaurant and shisha bar
Daisy Jackson
A stunning new Lebanese restaurant and shisha bar has opened at the foot of the Deansgate Square towers, with an iced latte tap, shisha bar, and all-day dining.
Kouba has taken over the former Salvi’s site in the glamorous neighbourhood, and just days after opening, it’s packed to the rafters.
The space has been transformed from family-style Italian restaurant into a Middle Eastern oasis.
Kouba operates as a three-in-one concept, doing coffees and brunches in the daytimes before transforming to a lively Lebanese restaurant by night.
It also has a sizeable terrace (blissfully weather-proof) which doubles up as a late-night shisha lounge, open into the early hours.
This newcomer to the city has already found fame online with moments like an indulgent iced salted brown butter oat latte, served from a tap (plus the whole menu of other iced drinks).
There’s also a sharing cheesecake for two that’s built before your eyes, and hot cookies with soft serve, alongside pastries from the award-winning La Chouquette bakery.
Brunch menu dishes will include signatures like the ‘Pocket Toast’, with fillings including smash burger, bacon and egg, and avocado and egg, alongside smoothies, juices and matchas.
As for the restaurant menu, there’ll be a full Lebanese food offering that includes hot and cold mezze, and Lebanese favourites like meshwi, lamb chops, and moussaka.
Click or swipe through the gallery below to see inside
Inside Kouba at Deansgate SquareThe iced latte tapThe private dining roomThe shisha loungeA full spread of foodThe coffee shop section of KoubaIced matcha and pastries from La ChouquetteDinner at KoubaCookies and soft serve
Kouba is now open and will be operational seven days a week from 8am-2am.
The new and improved Station Hotel is looking to become the undisputed home of sport in Alty
Danny Jones
The Station Hotel is no new name on the lips of Altrincham natives or those in and around Greater Manchester; chances are, plenty of you have either been or at least seen the late 19th-century pub after getting off the tram around the corner, but it’s been reborn following major renovations.
Not satisfied with a simple lick of paint or a new menu, Alty’s beloved Station looks, by and large, totally brand new, from the bar itself and every single piece of tiled floor to the brand new sports space.
There’s not only a shiny new glow coming from the soft-lit remodel; there’s now an added sense of warmth to The Station, and they’re looking to extend that welcoming feel not just to locals but the wider sporting community as well.
Having already been a go-to pre- and post-match pint spot for Manchester Storm and Alty FC, both of whom are seeing a huge surge in popularity of late, the team are looking to capitalise on those crowds and go one further.
As for catering to that audience, there’s no better example than the dedicated sports room, where, besides several of a dozen total screens, there are two fresh and premium standard pool tables, as well as one of the best examples of pub sports we’ve come across, maybe ever.
If you’re wondering what we’re on about, they’ve got actual interactive darts that don’t just give you some nice visuals, but that can be played head-to-head, against bots (yes, you can set the computer difficulty) and even online.
How does that work? Well, thanks to a built-in function on the display, you can literally face off against another player somewhere else in real-time.
So, say you happen to be throwing a few arrows in The Station comes the weekend, another punter happens to be at the oche in another Blind Tiger Inns venue – The Grosvenor over on Oxford Road in Manchester city centre, for instance – you can challenge them to a number of different games digitally.
Very cool.
Better still, the darts and the pool are completely free to use Monday to Friday right up until 7pm, and a mere £1.50 at the weekend. No wonder they had a busy opening night.
And then there’s all the deals on drinks: two for £12 on spritzes, £14 bottles of prosecco throughout the week until that same cut-off time, as well as £4 beers and large glasses of wine for as little as £6.
Be rude not to for those prices…
We especially love how the section of the pub where the old pool table and single darts board used to live is no longer the cold, almost cut-off section of the pub that used to be – it’s now one of the cosiest and most colourful parts, with a 360-padded seat, bright new mural, and one that opens out onto
Arguably the best bit, though, is one we’ll have to wait to see in its full glory just yet: the transformed patio area, with wall-to-wall bi-folding doors that will no doubt prove perfect for the summer and for when the World Cup rolls around.
Blind Tiger have, rather fittingly, played an absolute blinder with this one, and we expect the place to start a whole new chapter and fresh new reputation.
See you for a few scoops before a Storm game soon!
Daisy Jackson -
26th December 2023 
