We are delighted to announce that Plumbs’ Dairy has been named Retailer of the Year at the Cambridge Independent Business Awards.
The awards ceremony was held at King’s College, Cambridge, on 24 September 2026. It was a fantastic evening celebrating the best of the region’s independent businesses and we were incredibly proud to be part of it.
The judges described Plumbs’ Dairy as “a wonderful example of a long-term local business that has moved with the times without forgetting the values with which it was founded”. We couldn’t have put it better ourselves. We’ve always believed in fresh, local produce delivered to your door, and in the personal service that comes from being a family-run business. We have kept those values at the heart of everything we do, even as the way people shop has changed.
A huge thank you to the judges and organisers, and to everyone who has supported us along the way.
We’d also like to congratulate all of this year’s winners, especially some of our lovely customers: Alchemie Technology, who were double winners on the night, Owlstone Medical and Hot Numbers Coffee. It’s a real pleasure to be celebrating alongside businesses we’re proud to serve.
We’re absolutely delighted to announce that Plumb’s Dairy has been shortlisted for Retailer of the Year at the Cambridge Independent Business Awards 2026!
As a family-run business, this recognition means a great deal to us. It’s a reflection of the hard work and dedication of our wonderful team, and the incredible support we’ve received from our loyal customers over the years. We genuinely couldn’t have done it without you.
Congratulations to all the other finalists – we’re honoured to be in such great company.
The winners will be announced at the Cambridge Independent Business Awards Gala at King’s College on Thursday 24th September.
Wish us luck… and thank you, as always, for supporting your local dairy.
We recently came across this wonderful clip from the Anglia TV archives – a 1994 episode of The Village Scene, filmed in Balsham. It features Bernard Plumb, second-generation owner, out on the milk round in the days when the dairy was still based in the village. Some of our most loyal customers may well remember it from when it first aired!
IF THE VIDEO DOES NOT PLAY, PLEASE CLICK HERE
A lovely bit of nostalgia for Plumbs’ – and a reminder of where it all began!
To watch the full episode, click here
Originally broadcast by Anglia Television in 1994. Shared with appreciation for historical and community interest purposes. All rights remain with ITV/Anglia Television
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When you choose Plumbs’ Dairy, you’re choosing a proper local service – the kind where you’ll speak to Kevin in the office, not a call centre 200 miles away. Our drivers live here, work here, and know local streets like the back of their hand. They understand the early‑morning rhythms, the shortcuts, the tricky parking spots, and they’ll always do their best to make deliveries smooth and reliable for your business.
We already deliver to busy business hubs across Cambridgeshire, Suffolk and Norfolk – including Cambridge, Ely, Newmarket, Bury St Edmunds, Saffron Walden, Royston, Thetford and more.
Check our delivery map to find out if we cover your town or village.
Whether you’re a café, office, school or care setting, we bring fresh local products straight to your door – quietly, reliably, and with a smile. Here are some of the ways we currently support other local businesses and organisations. Click here to read more about our suppliers.
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You won’t be passed around 50 departments. Ask to speak to Kevin – and he’ll get you sorted!
Published: 1 June 2026 | World Milk Day
This World Milk Day, we wanted to tell you something that might surprise you about your morning pint.
When our driver pulls up to your door, they’re not just making a delivery. They’re part of a circular economy that has been quietly running since before the phrase “circular economy” even existed – one that starts and ends with a humble glass bottle.
There’s a reason Plumbs’ Dairy has always championed glass over plastic. A single glass milk bottle, in normal use, will make the journey from dairy to doorstep and back again up to 25 times before it’s retired. Not recycled. Reused. That’s the same bottle, washed, sterilised, refilled, recapped, and dispatched again. No new raw materials. No new manufacturing energy. Just the same container doing its job, over and over.
When a bottle has finally done its 25 rounds, it doesn’t go to landfill – it gets melted down and made into a new glass bottle. So even at the end of its life, nothing is wasted.
Recycling is good. Reusing is better.
Here’s something most people don’t think about when their milk arrives on the doorstep: the lorry that brought it didn’t come empty, and it won’t leave empty either.
When Plumbs’ Dairy makes a delivery run, the vehicle goes out fully loaded with fresh milk, eggs, bread, and more for customers across Cambridgeshire and Suffolk. On the way back, it collects the empties – glass bottles left out by customers – and brings them back to the supplier. Those bottles are then washed, sterilised, refilled and recapped, ready to start their next round.
The result is a delivery model with no wasted miles. Full lorry out. Full lorry back. That’s genuinely efficient logistics, and it’s a world away from the throwaway supply chains most of us don’t see behind our weekly shop.
The glass bottle story is just one piece of what Plumbs’ Dairy has been building over more than 70 years.
Earlier this year, the team completed the installation of 72 solar panels on the roof of their warehouse in Linton, Cambridgeshire. Those panels now generate clean energy that powers 11 electric vehicles, covering around 20% of delivery routes. Henry Plumb set out on his first milk round in 1952 with a horse and cart. His grandson Justin is now running rounds on sunshine.
And then there’s the no minimum order policy – something that sounds simple, but matters more than people realise. Whether you want a single pint of milk or a full weekly shop including eggs, bread, cheese and cold-pressed juice, Plumbs’ Dairy will deliver it. No minimum spend. Free delivery. That means fewer unnecessary car trips to the supermarket, and a more flexible service that works for everyone from single households to large families.
World Milk Day is an opportunity to celebrate what’s good about milk – its nutrition, its role in farming communities, its place at the British breakfast table. But it’s also a moment to ask where our food comes from, and what kind of supply chains we want to support.
The circular economy of glass bottle milk isn’t a marketing concept dreamed up in a boardroom. It’s just the way things have always been done. It turns out the milkman had it right all along.
Ready to make the switch to glass? There’s no minimum order, free delivery, and over 1,000 products available – from fresh milk and local free range eggs to cold-pressed juices, seasonal fruit and veg, and bread.
Register here or call 01223 893033.