Cheddar surge

Carol Graham shows off the full range of cheddar cheese available from Graham’s Dairy, including Mild, Mature and Extra Mature.
Carol Graham shows off the full range of cheddar cheese available from Graham’s Dairy, including Mild, Mature and Extra Mature.

CHEESE sales continue to be dominated by cheddar and in a highly competitive market Cathedral City is significantly outperforming its peers, according to brand owner Dairy Crest.
Block cheeses take 75% of sales, but the firm says those products have become less dominant in the past couple of years as consumers look for more convenient packs and sizes.
Dairy Crest’s most recent launch has been its £1 PMP Cathedral City Selections Mini Bag. The pack was introduced, it says, to sell at the price consumers want and to enable convenience retailers to be price-competitive.

Dairy Crest’s Cathedral City Selections Mini Bag £1 PMP.
Dairy Crest’s Cathedral City Selections Mini Bag £1 PMP.

• Scottish firm Graham’s says its cheese range has shown fantastic growth in the past year, almost doubling its share of Scotland’s £126.6m cheddar market. Two years after its launch the range continues to grow ahead of the market, showing one of the highest rates of growth – around 100% year-on-year, the firm says. “Since launch, the response from shoppers has been excellent, with our leading cheddar product continuing to be Mature, a company spokesperson said.
“We’re starting to see a trend of more consumers opting for branded cheese. Customers are finding quality assurance and a level of trust in recognised brands, and this is a clear opportunity for us.”

• Independent cheese producer Wyke Farms has unveiled newly designed branding and packaging for its core range of cheese.
The design, which includes darker colours and a new logo, aims to better communicate the brand’s provenance and give it a stronger on-shelf presence, the firm said.