Table of Contents
Executive Summary
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- The market
- Cheese market will continue double-digit growth in the next five years
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- Figure 1: Total China retail value sales and forecast of cheese, 2015-25
- Figure 2: Total China retail volume sales and forecast of cheese, 2015-25
- Increased cooking and baking habits will benefit packaged cheese
- Impact of COVID-19 on cheese
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- Figure 3: Short, medium and long-term impact of COVID-19 on retail sales of cheese, December 2020
- Companies and brands
- Mengniu and Arla’s synergy creates robust growth
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- Figure 4: Leading companies’ value share of the cheese market, China, 2019-20
- International and domestic players alike expanding cheese snack offerings
- Kiri collaborations introduce consumption methods
- The consumer
- Top popular types of cheese remain the same as 2018
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- Figure 5: Consumption frequency, October 2020
- Growing opportunities in sweet cheese dishes
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- Figure 6: Consumption occasion, October 2020
- Besides traditional retail channels, leverage the power of foodservice channels to educate consumers and stimulate purchase
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- Figure 7: Purchase channels, October 2020
- Avoid direct competition with dairy heavyweights and differentiate with bold brand motifs
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- Figure 8: Brands purchased, October 2020
- Barriers to consumption differ for consumers and non-consumers
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- Figure 9: Barriers to consumption, by consumption frequency, October 2020
- Consumers are conflicted on the nutrition cheese provides
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- Figure 10: Attitudes towards cheese, October 2020
- What we think
Issues and Insights
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- Differentiate in children’s cheese snacks with added functions
- The facts
- The implications
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- Figure 11: Examples of cheese chips, USA, 2020
- Use foodservice channels to increase knowledge of cheese consumption
- The facts
- The implications
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- Figure 12: Alimentari packaged cheese selection, Shanghai
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- Figure 13: Green & Safe ready-to-cook meal section, Shanghai
- Adapt ‘light’ ready-to-cook cheese snacks to suit demand of young females
- The facts
- The implications
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- Figure 14: Examples of ready-to-cook/semi-finished meal solutions feature cheese ingredients, Taiwan, China, Japan and Qatar, 2020
The Market – What You Need to Know
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- Cheese will continue trajectory as the fastest-growing dairy category
- Increasing demand for healthy snacking will benefit the cheese market
- Uncertainty in imports present opportunity to local producers
Market Size and Forecast
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- Cheese steadily grows influence in Chinese diet
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- Figure 15: Retail market value and volume of cheese, China, 2015-20
- Cheese will be the fastest-growing dairy category
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- Figure 16: Total China retail value sales and forecast of cheese, 2015-25
- Figure 17: Total China retail volume sales and forecast of cheese, 2015-25
Market Factors
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- Success in localising cheese snack for children spurs market growth in the short run
- Increased cooking and baking habits at home
- Incentive to develop local cheese production
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- Figure 18: % share of imported cheese from each country, China, 2019
Key Players – What You Need to Know
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- Foreign players lead the market, but domestic brands quickly gain
- Mengniu and Arla partnership off to a strong start
- Further expansions in snackable cheese
Market Share
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- Cheese lollipops drive growth for Savencia and Milkground
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- Figure 19: Leading companies’ value share of the cheese market, China, 2019-20
- Collaboration with Arla Foods has helped Mengniu strengthen its market position
Competitive Strategies
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- Increasing formats of snackable cheese
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- Figure 20: Yili Drinkable Cheese Original Flavoured Processed Cheese, China, 2020
- Figure 21: Dr.Cheese product examples
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- Figure 22: Milkana Yi Bei Zhi Shi
- Figure 23: Arla ASCX cheese dessert
- Collaborations to highlight cooking and baking occasions
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- Figure 24: Kiri x EVERNAKED double berry cheesecake
- Figure 25: Advertisement of Kiri x Hema collaboration
- Leading brands team up
Who’s Innovating?
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- Innovations focus on cheese as an ingredient, not an end product
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- Figure 26: Top 10 sub-categories with cheese and cheese product ingredients, December 2018-November 2020
- Format innovations
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- Figure 27: Top 10 texture claims of new cheese product launches, China, 2018-20
- Using REV technology to make cheese chips
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- Figure 28: Moon Cheese Cheddar Believe It cheese snack, US
- Turn cheese into bite-sized candies
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- Figure 29: Cheese candy product examples, Taiwan, China and Japan, 2019-20
- Ready-to-cook cheese snacks offer convenience in the kitchen
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- Figure 30: Swift Smoked Mozzarella Cheese Skewer, Brazil, 2020
- Figure 31: Caseificio Longo Tomino Cheese and Speck Forest-Style Skewer, Italy, 2020
- Flavour innovations
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- Figure 32: Top 10 flavour components of new cheese product launches, China, 2018-20
- Partnering with popular children’s snacks
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- Figure 33: Philadelphia Cream Cheese Inspired by Cadbury Caramilk, Australia, 2020
- Figure 34: Natori Cheetara Pizza Potato Flavour Cheese & Fish Snack, Japan, 2020
- Plant-based cheese offerings for the lactose intolerant
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- Figure 35: Delishu Cultured Cashew Cheese Product with Sundried Tomato & Oregano, Romania, 2020
The Consumer – What You Need to Know
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- Incidence of cheese consumption increases but popular formats remain unchanged
- Females drive demand for cheese used in cooking and baking
- Absolute barriers to consumption and barriers to frequent consumption differ
Consumption Frequency
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- Cheese format consumption remains unchanged
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- Figure 36: Consumption frequency, October 2020
- Females more likely to frequently consume sliced and mini/snacking block cheese
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- Figure 37: Consumption frequency – Select formats, “once a week or more”, by gender and age, October 2020
- Market responds to rising ‘suitable for children’ claims
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- Figure 38: Consumption frequency – “Once a week or more”, by family structure, October 2020
- Figure 39: Top 10 claims of new hard cheese & semi-hard cheese, processed cheese, soft cheese & semi-soft cheese and fresh cheese & cream cheese product launches, China, 2018-20
Consumption Occasion
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- Cheese-inspired sweet dishes on the rise
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- Figure 40: Consumption occasion, October 2020
- Females of different ages have their sweet and savoury preferences
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- Figure 41: Consumption occasion – “As an ingredient in making a sweet dish (eg cheesecake, pastry)”, by gender and age, October 2020
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- Figure 42: Homemade cheese snacks
- Figure 43: Consumption occasion – “As an ingredient in cooking a savoury dish”, by gender and age, October 2020
- High-personal-income consumers may be more demanding on flavour notes
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- Figure 44: Consumption occasion – Select occasions, by personal income level, October 2020
- Figure 45: Reflets de France Five Cheese Platter, France, 2020
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- Figure 46: Infographic of S.Engine instant coffee pods
- Figure 47: Screenshots of KOL videos on cheese-related knowledge
- Frequent consumers pair cheese with salad, meat and alcohol
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- Figure 48: Consumption occasion, by consumption frequency (ranked in order of difference), October 2020
Purchase Channels
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- Drive sales through collaborations with foodservice channels
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- Figure 49: Purchase channels, October 2020
- Target singles in convenience stores/grocery stores
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- Figure 50: Purchase channels – “Convenience stores/grocery stores”, by family structure, October 2020
- High-frequency consumers strongly prefer gourmet stores and fresh grocery ecommerce
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- Figure 51: Purchase channels – By consumption frequency (ranked in order of difference), October 2020
Brands Purchased
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- Three dairy giants lead in brand recognition
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- Figure 52: Brands purchased, October 2020
- Gender preferences in cheese brands
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- Figure 53: Brands purchased – Select brands, by gender, October 2020
- Switching between brands is common
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- Figure 54: Brands purchased – Select brands, by select brand users, October 2020
Barriers to Consumption
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- Nutrition, instead of taste, is key barrier to frequent consumption
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- Figure 55: Barriers to consumption, by consumption frequency, October 2020
- Dietary preferences, taste and lactose intolerance are absolute barriers to consumption
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- Figure 56: Barriers to consumption – Select statements, by consumption frequency, October 2020
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- Figure 57: Examples of regional cheese dishes
- Figure 58: Mascarpone cheese tofu
- Young females especially concerned about fat and cholesterol
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- Figure 59: Barriers to consumption – Select statements, by gender and age, October 2020
Attitudes towards Cheese
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- Consumers acknowledge both sides of the coin in terms of nutrition
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- Figure 60: Attitudes towards cheese, October 2020
- Children’s cheese can feature probiotics
- High-income consumers more likely to buy into health benefits of cheese
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- Figure 61: Attitudes towards cheese – Select statements, by personal income level, October 2020
- Figure 62: Average nutritional content of new cheese launches, China, December 2018-November 2020
- Consumers of natural cheese more likely to be swayed by taste
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- Figure 63: Agreement of select perceptions of cheese, by brands purchased, October 2020
Appendix – Market Size and Forecast
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- Figure 64: Total market value of cheese, China, 2015-25
- Figure 65: Total market volume of cheese, China, 2015-25
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Appendix – Methodology and Abbreviations
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- Methodology
- Abbreviations
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