Like several other segments of dairy, most natural and processed cheese categories enjoyed strong dollar sales during a recent 52-week period, but suffered unit sales declines, according to information provided by Chicago-based Circana.
The past year saw reduced demand for cheese on the foodservice side, thanks to widespread pandemic-related restaurant closures and indoor dining bans. However, the picture was much brighter on the retail cheese side.
It has been a very, very good year for cheese, at least within the major retail channels.
Dollar sales within the natural cheese category shot up 17.0% to $15,449.5 million during the 52 weeks ending Oct. 4, 2020, according to data from Chicago-based market research firm IRI.
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%.