Focus On Cheese: 14 June

By Vince Bamford (vjbamford@googlemail.com)

Publishing: 14 June 2025

Advertising deadline: 30 May 2025

Submissions deadline: 27 May 2025

Print, digital and sponsorship opportunities

It’s not often you see a grocery category in universal volume growth. But that’s what Kantar’s numbers for cheese sales for the year to 23 March show. Shoppers have bought more blocks of everything from Cheddar to blue cheese in the past year. But scratch beneath the rind and there’s an issue for the UK’s best-loved cheese. “Cheddar has seen shoppers switch away to other kinds of cheese throughout 2024,” says Kantar analyst Kitty Edwards. So what are they buying instead? What can cheddar-makers do about this? And why is cheese proving so popular right now?

Types of cheese: We will be exploring how the UK’s cheese tastes are changing. Are we developing more of a penchant for pecorino, going mad for mozzarella or raving for roquefort, for example? And what influence could the Trump trade deal have on the availability of US cheeses in the UK?

Sales: This feature will pay close attention to the sales performances of brands, own label and retailers over the past year and how this is changing. To what extent are retailers using their cheese aisle to differentiate themselves? Who’s doing it best? Which brands are winning? Why?

Cost pressures, promotions and retail prices: We are also interested in how inflation is shaping the market and what influence this is having on retail prices. Are brands promoting more to keep shoppers buying? And what influence is all this having on the market share of brands versus own-label?

Innovation: This feature will pay close attention to the latest trends in cheese and how these are playing out in terms of product innovation. We will profile eight new products or ranges, ideally ones that have not appeared in The Grocer before. We need launch date, rsp, and a hi-res picture of each.