● Just four out of the top 10 bestsellers delivered value growth in the past year: challenger cheddar brands, Cheestrings and own label.

● Pilgrims Choice has grown to be the clear number two cheddar to Cathedral City following its distinctive Chosen campaign.

● Seriously is the other cheddar brand fighting own label. Lactalis McLelland has invested in NPD and a rebrand that has seen ‘Strong’ removed from the name. Sales are up 10.9%.

● Mondelez’s Dairylea and Philadelphia both failed to grow, despite range extensions; Bel UK’s Babybel and Laughing Cow have thus far failed to fully capitalise on the growing adult snacking trend.

● Just four out of the top 10 bestsellers delivered value growth in the past year: challenger cheddar brands, Cheestrings and own label.

● Pilgrims Choice has grown to be the clear number two cheddar to Cathedral City following its distinctive Chosen campaign.

● Seriously is the other cheddar brand fighting own label. Lactalis McLelland has invested in NPD and a rebrand that has seen ‘Strong’ removed from the name. Sales are up 10.9%.

● Mondelez’s Dairylea and Philadelphia both failed to grow, despite range extensions; Bel UK’s Babybel and Laughing Cow have thus far failed to fully capitalise on the growing adult snacking trend.

● The cheese market has grown by 1.0% and is now worth £2.8bn. This is an improvement on last year, when the market was only growing by 0.6%, with less price deflation pulling the market down this year. Cheese is also performing well in terms of volume (+1.2%) although this is behind last year’s growth (+4.5%), which could have slowed as a response to price rises across the majority of sectors.

● The cheese market is divided into seven sectors: cheddar, Continental ex blue, mini portion, territorials ex blue, total blue, total processed and total soft white. More premium sectors are driving growth this year, which in turn contributes to overall value growth, with strong performance from Continental excl blue (+5.1%) and mini portions (+4.3%). One driver of this growth is people seeing these options as natural/less processed.

● In contrast, the cheapest sectors are the only parts of the market in decline (cheddar –0.9%; total soft white –1.1%). Unlike last year, own label is now growing ahead of branded (3.6% vs –2.6%), which is driven by own label’s dominance in premium sectors vs branded reliance on cheddar.

● Cheddar is the largest sector in the market, accounting for 53% of volume sold, and this year has seen significant differences in the performance between brands and own label (brands –6.7% vs own label +2.8%). Aldi and Lidl have both contributed to this own label growth in Cheddar, enjoying double-digit growth as they manage to entice shoppers away from branded favourites. Despite this, Cheddar remains in overall decline.

● Aldi and Lidl now carry two of the highest over-trades in Cheese, compared with their shares in grocery. Together, they represent just over 13% of the cheese market, against just under 10% of the grocery market. As the discounters’ strong performance continues, private label could become more important in cheese going forward, and more premium sectors could also flourish as they become more accessible through discount retailers.

● Another future focus could be on taste. We are seeing consumers choosing cheese less for how it tastes, so manufacturers could start to emphasise taste specifically to make sure the biggest driver of consumption doesn’t become the biggest driver of decline.

Faith Ayomoto/Kantar Worldpanel

● Convenience has been the buzzword in cheese campaigns this year. The Primula Makes The… campaign demonstrated how easily the product can make a main meal with a heavy focus on convenience and its melting credentials.

● Bel UK is looking to grow the adult snacking occasion. It recently invested in an integrated marketing campaign for Mini BabyBel focusing on young adults, which it says delivered a 7% uplift in sales when Mini Babybel was sampled front of store.

● The Laughing Cow has also put investment behind its Light creamy cheese triangles as a snacking option with a TV ad this summer (pictured).

● Convenience has been the buzzword in cheese campaigns this year. The Primula Makes The… campaign demonstrated how easily the product can make a main meal with a heavy focus on convenience and its melting credentials.

● Bel UK is looking to grow the adult snacking occasion. It recently invested in an integrated marketing campaign for Mini BabyBel focusing on young adults, which it says delivered a 7% uplift in sales when Mini Babybel was sampled front of store.

● The Laughing Cow has also put investment behind its Light creamy cheese triangles as a snacking option with a TV ad this summer (pictured).

Christmas just isn’t complete without a healthy helping of cheese

Christmas just isn’t complete without a healthy helping of cheese. And this year, retailers and brands are hoping to boost sales even further by combining Britain’s two great loves: cheese and booze.

Yes, this year is the season of ‘drunken cheese’. Perhaps the most talked about offering is the Great British Cheese Company’s raspberry and prosecco creation, unveiled to much media hype this month and described by Cosmopolitan as ‘the most millennial mash-up ever’.

Retailing at £4.50 for a pink 200g truckle directly from the manufacturer, this Wensleydale promises to be both “sharp and sweet” and already has its own waiting list. Retailers have established the trend as more than a one-off novelty. This year, M&S has launched its own Cornish Cruncher and cider cheese bake, which serves eight to 10 at a price of £11. And Ocado has taken a punt on the Cheshire Cheese Company’s Irish Whiskey and Stem Ginger Cheddar. Retailing at £4.29 for 2009, the product is the “perfect dessert cheese”.

Ocado has also dabbled in mixing cheese with sweet flavours. At the online retailer’s Christmas preview in July, journalists could sample the Cheshire Cheese Company’s cheddar with sticky toffee and cheddar with apple & cinnamon. Although the combinations initially provoked some dubious reactions, the cheese received some repentant wow reviews.

Also on Ocado is Snowdonia Cheese Company’s Ginger Spice and Bouncing Berry cheddars at £2.19/100g.
Finally, Tesco has resized its wedding Cheese Celebration Cake to feed a 30-person Christmas party for £1 a head with five popular cheeses, including Cornish brie and Coastal Bite cheddar.

And the M&S Christmas Tree cheeseboard takes full marks for decadence. Serving up to 25, it includes bitesize pieces red leicester and Cornish Cove, P’tit Basque cheese flowers, chopped dried apricots and a raisin medley.

● Continental cheeses experienced the fastest growth in the past year, with a growing move among consumers away from cheddar and towards more adventurous cheese products. Knowledge of more exotic cheeses is on the rise, which has led to an extra £24m spent on Continentals, while cheddar declined by 0.9%. Brits are becoming increasingly aware there is more to cheese than cheddar. 

● Average prices of cheddar dropped 1.9% overall as the sector fought to keep volume. Though the strategy proved successful for own label with average price reductions kept minimal at 0.9%, brands were unable to prevent cheddar volume decline despite average price decreases of 2.4% – the highest in the category.

● In accordance with wider market trends, sales of cheese on promotion in the past year are down. Price reductions and volume-driving deals suffered losses of 6.3% and 20.9% respectively as retailers increasingly opt for everyday affordability in pricing.