Page 53 - Demo

CHEESE COTTAGE INDUSTRY THRIVES AGAIN Until recently, cottage cheese was seen as a product category caught in a 1980s time warp along with crash diets, aerobics classes and leg warmers. However, the sustained shift towards high protein food among health-conscious consumers has led to a strong resurgence in the sales and consumption of cottage cheese, with one of the main beneficiaries being Bulla, the brand that helped drive its popularity more than 40 years ago. “The versatility of cottage cheese along with its low fat/high protein properties make it the perfect snacking and meal ingredient for consumers looking to support a healthy active lifestyle,” Bulla Dairy Foods Head of Marketing Andrew Noisette told Retail World. “Bulla has worked hard over the past few years to reposition its offer in line with these consumer trends, updating its packaging and brand communications to introduce younger consumers to the product, which has in turn led to increased sales for the cottage cheese segment.” Mr Noisette highlights that the brand’s formulation and recipe hasn’t changed since its inception. “The product is still hand cut using fresh local milk in the Bulla factory in Colac in south-western Victoria,” he said. “This has led to the sales of Bulla’s cottage cheese increasing by over 93 per cent for the 26 weeks to the end of August versus the same period last year, well above the 20 per cent growth experienced across the cheese category.” cheeses, it’s clear we’ll need to focus on getting the ‘five Ps’ right: delivering the right products, price points, pack sizes, promotions and positioning,” Ms Jones said. The right product will be more important than ever, she says, for retailers to have a range of offerings for different demographics, price points and entertaining occasions. “Price, of course, will still be important, but consumers are also looking for an experience when they buy a premium cheese – one that delivers real taste, texture and theatre,” Ms Jones said. To this end, Somerdale International’s range of classic and contemporary British cheeses appear well placed, especially given the emphasis on quality, provenance and flavour it promotes. A good example Ms Jones cites is its Barber’s 1833 Vintage Cheddar, said to be aged for 24 months and made by the world’s oldest surviving cheddar-makers, the Barber family, near the village of Cheddar itself, in the English county of Somerset. Somerdale also recognises the need to “excite” consumers with innovative varieties and interesting flavours, she says. “For example, Somerdale’s Il Truffelino combines the creamy texture of classic English cheddar with the complex and luxuriant flavour of black summer truffle, and its Champagne Cheddar combines a subtle blend of medium mature cheddar and champagne to create a fresh zesty blended cheese ideal for those special, celebratory occasions,” Ms Jones said. However, communicating and engaging with consumers on key attributes and benefits of all cheeses in the specialty sector continues to present challenges when it comes to positioning – in terms of the category and individual cheeses. “Although the majors have improved in terms of better navigation and less duplication, it’s still the case that many retail specialty cheese fixtures are somewhat confusing, with different cheese types, pack sizes, formats, styles and levels of maturation,” Ms Jones said. To help address the confusing and often fragmented offer that confronts consumers, Somerdale has launched its Westminster range of quintessential English cheeses. “This specially selected range is made by some of England’s finest, family-run, traditional cheesemakers and we believe its standout branding, clear on-pack consumer messages and demonstrable provenance will help overcome consumer confusion and make a more cohesive and compelling on-shelf impact,” Ms Jones said She points to another important trend that Somerdale believes will play a key role in building the category: the move towards smaller size packs. “Smaller packs, and as a consequence more affordable price points, will encourage consumers to experiment and broaden their cheese repertoire,” she said. “In line with this, we’ve launched our new Westminster range in a smaller 150g retail pre-pack format in shelf ready cases of 10 for the Australian market, and we’ll also move other cheeses into smaller packs in due course.” In conclusion, Ms Jones says that while the pandemic has led to many unprecedented challenges and changes in the specialty cheese segment of the retail cheese market, some positive trends and opportunities have emerged. “Indeed,” she said, “it will be interesting to see whether, as a sector, we can capitalise on a renewed interest in consuming good natural food, cooking and entertaining at home and the seemingly here-to-stay rise in online shopping. “What is clear is that a comprehensive and complementary range of innovative and exclusive specialty, imported cheeses can give deli counters and cheese fixtures real theatre and stand- out appeal. This will enable retailers to differentiate and offer shoppers something a little more special than what they would normally find in the traditional cheese aisle. It also presents retailers with a great opportunity to drive premiumisation and, given cheese’s position as an already high-penetration category, persuade consumers to trade up, spend more in-store and continue their love affair with cheese.” OCT, 2020 RETAIL WORLD 51