A cursory glance at recent sales figures for natural cheese might lead some to believe that the $7 billion category has finally lost a step. After years of booming growth, dollar sales of the commercially produced cheeses tracked by SymphonyIRI Group finally slipped by more than 5% during the latest 52 weeks ending June 13.
But, that's only half of the story. Volume sales of natural cheese actually continued to grow during the past year by 4.2%. Slices and shredded cheeses saw the strongest gains, with unit sales up 8% and 5.8%, respectively. And, only cubed cheeses and refrigerated, grated cheeses saw volume declines — of 8.1% and 1.1%.
In fact, 2008 was the last time volume growth stalled out for natural cheese. That year, unit sales fell 1%, as commodity market volatility caused a huge spike in the price of animal feed, resulting in a sharp decline in dairy production and an equally sharp increase in dairy prices.
| 52 WEEKS ENDING JUNE 13, 2010 | DOLLAR SALES | % CHANGE FROM LAST YEAR |
|---|---|---|
| Supermarkets | $7.2B | -5.6 |
| Drug | $12.1M | 3.9 |
| F/D/Mx | $7.4B | -5.5 |
| CALENDAR YEAR | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 |
|---|---|---|---|
| DOLLAR SALES | |||
| Supermarkets | $6.7B | $7.5B | $7.4B |
| Drug | $9.7M | $10.8M | $11.7M |
| F/D/Mx | $6.8B | $7.7B | $7.5B |
SUBCATEGORIES
| 52 WEEKS ENDING JUNE 13, 2010 | DOLLAR SALES | % CHANGE FROM LAST YEAR |
|---|---|---|
| Natural All Other Forms | $68.9B | -7.3 |
| Natural Chunks | $2.4B | -7.1 |
| Natural Crumbled | $220.7M | 1.3 |
| Natural Cube | $56.3M | -18.5 |
| Natural Shredded Cheese | $2.4B | -7.5 |
| Natural Slices | $915.8M | -2.1 |
| Natural String Cheese | $579.4M | -0.3 |
| Rfg Grated Cheese | $107.9M | -1.8 |
| Ricotta Cheese | $186.6M | -2.9 |
| SS Grated Cheese | $247.4M | -3.0 |
