Birmingham 'Cheesy feet' pong among thousands of complaints as city named UK's 'smelliest'

Birmingham has been named the 'smelliest' city in the UK, with the stench of 'cheesy feet' one of thousands of complaints made to the council in recent years. Since 2001, 1,916 odour complaints have been submitted to the city council - an average of 50 a month.

This is more than any other city in the UK, according to new research from nicotine pouch firm Alternix. The firm submitted Freedom of Information requests to council's across the country to investigate the number of odour complaints each had receieved.

The data named Birmingham as the UK's stinkiest city, with Glasgow, Leeds and Swansea also ranking high on the list. Among the thousands of complaints made to Birmingham City Council was the stench of 'cheesy feet', a mystery pong that plagued residents across Birmingham for days in 2022.

READ MORE: Birmingham pensioners in flat plagued by 'sewage-like' smell say 'we can't live like this'

This 'cheesy feet' whiff was first reported to the council back in September 2022 and could reportedly be smelt across the city from Sutton Coldfield in the north to Kings Heath, Selly Oak and Bournville in the south. Locals were desperately shutting their windows in an attempt to keep the nasty stench at bay.

Following an investigation, Birmingham City Council found that the pong appeared to be caused by manure spreading. A statement released at the time read: "The prevailing view, given the time of year, is that it may well be due to land spreading as farmers have been harvesting their crops and are now busy clearing their manure/slurry stores and fertilising their fields for the winter crops."

Nearly 2,000 odour complaints were made to Birmingham City Council between 1st January 2021 and 29th February 2024 - the most of any council in the country. Other odour complaints to the council may stem from poor housing conditions, and illegal waste dumping which has plagued communities across the city.

Ranking in second is Glasgow, with 1,420 complaints made to Glasgow City Council, with a staggering 39% of complaints made due to smoking. Commenting on the findings, David Phillips at Alternix said: "A number of complaints have been made to councils across the UK regarding foul smells, ranging from sewage odour through to cooking smells.

"Smoking can be unpleasant for those around you, and is of particular concern in Glasgow, with 547 odour complaints pertaining to the use of cigarettes, between the 1st January 2021 and the 29th February 2024."