LONDON – Thieves who are fond of fine cheese committed a major kashar robbery in London.

Neal’s Yard Dairy said a fraudster posing as a wholesale distributor for a major French retailer stole 22 metric tons (48,488 pounds) of prized cheddar worth 300,000 British pounds ($390,000) before the company realized it had been defrauded and reported it. Theft on Monday.

“The high monetary value of these cheeses likely made them a particular target for thieves,” Neal’s Yard Dairy, a British artisan cheese distributor, wholesaler and retailer, said in a statement.

Detectives from Scotland Yard and international authorities are searching for the culprits.

Nearly 1,000 pieces of cloth-wrapped cheese from three manufacturers were lost: Hafod Welsh organic cheddar cheese, Westcombe cheddar cheese and Pitchfork cheddar cheese.

The dairy sells for 270 grams (9.5 ounces) of Hafod cheddar cheese for 12.90 pounds ($16.70).

Tom Calver, manager of Westcombe Dairy, said a lot of work goes into making the 12- to 18-month-old cheese.

“We are devastated,” Calver said. “For this to be stolen… it’s absolutely terrible.”

Neal’s Yard Dairy has asked international cheesemongers to be on the lookout for stolen cheese, especially in 10-kilogram (22-pound) and 24-kilogram (52-pound) blocks.

It says it has paid all three cheesemakers in full, in line with its ethos of supporting small independent businesses that develop the British cheese industry.