The good news continues on the cheese front. According to Portland, Ore.-based Allied Market Research, the U.S. cheese market was valued at $32.3 billion in 2017, and is projected to reach $40.5 billion by 2025, growing at a compound annual growth rate of 2.8%.
While processed cheese struggled, dollar and unit sales for cubed, shredded and refrigerated grated natural cheeses rose
April 3, 2018
Natural cheese continues to dominate in the cheese category. The natural cheese category showed dollar sales up 0.3% to $12.9 billion, while unit sales stayed at $3.9 billion, according to data from Chicago-based market research firm IRI for the 52 weeks ending Dec. 31, 2017.
Natural cheese sales have been steady for subcategories such as slices and shreds, but others (crumbles, chunks) are struggling. Meanwhile, cheese spreads/balls saw a sales boost in the processed cheese category.
As we wrote about in our State of the Industry report last month, consumers love their cheese and are eating more of it, but prefer all-natural varieties.
It is estimated that 70% of all cheese used in processing channels is natural. The key varieties are Cheddar, mozzarella, cream cheese and hard Italian cheeses.
Refrigerated grated, crumbled and shredded cheeses are still winners for the natural cheese category, while imitation cheese loaf and shreds show promise in the processed cheese category.
Convenience is the key. Shred it, grate it, crumble it. Consumers like their cheese ready-to-go, whether it’s natural or processed, though natural is still winning the game.