Market report: Sales boost milk-for-cheese demand

UK cheese sales increased by 5% in the year ending 11 July 2010, compared to the previous year, according to latest data from analyst Kantar Worldpanel. Total cheese sales rose to 404,157t, but prices fell by 2.3% to average £5.96/kg, meaning total consumer spend only increased by 2.6% to £2.4bn.

“Sales of loose cheese have continued to fall, down 4.7% to 22,999t,” said a report by DairyCo. “At £6.92/kg, loose cheese is now 17% more expensive than pre-packed cheese, which has probably contributed to its decline in sales.” Pre-packed cheese sales increased by 5.7% to 381,158t.

Volume sales of cheddar increased by 5.8%, with mature cheddar growing at the expense of mild and medium types. But heavy promotional activity contributed to a 3.7% drop in prices, said the report.

“The average price of branded cheddar cheese is now 6.1% lower than supermarket-label cheddar and only 13% higher than value cheddar. This has seen sales of branded cheddar increase by 21.9% at the expense of value cheddar, which has fallen 16.5%.”