TWO new cheeses have been unveiled by a Kentish farmer in an effort to reduce food miles and put the county on the cheese map.

George Jessel, a mixed farmer from Wye, near Ashford, has invested around £100,000 in a new plant to make Brabourne Brie and Kentish Crown.

Although Kent already produces a small range of cheeses, Mr Jessel, who is also chairman of Kent County Agricultural Society, claims he has spotted a gap in the market.

He also aims to give Sussex, which produces at leasst a dozen cheeses, more competition.

He makes his cheeses from milk from a herd of British Friesian cattle at Wye. Kentish Crown takes its name from the Wye Crown, a prominent feature on the North Downs. It is a semi-hard cheese that is similar to Caerphilly.

Mr Jessel has hired Geoff Parker, an expert cheesemaker who formerly worked at Syndale, Faversham, to help him.

Mr Jessel teamed up with his brother Alastair, owner of Taywell Farm Shop in Goudhurst, to launch the first two cheeses on Saturday.

"This is a small business that I want to grow and employ rural people," he said. "I want to supply all the farm shops and it should grow from that.

"There are at lease a dozen Sussex cheeses and I thought that it was time for us in Kent to put a mark on the cheese map. There's room for all of us and there are some great cheeselovers out there."

Mr Jessel has no intention of stopping at two cheeses.He already has plans for a blue, and there could be more in the pipeline.