|
|
Article: An appetite for cheese: a food futures forecast.(cheese trends spotlight)(Column)
- Article from:
- Dairy Foods
- Article date:
- March 1, 2006
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2006 BNP Media. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
|
The American palate for cheese is changing. Consumers are leaving the sanctuary of traditional cheese varieties, such as mild Cheddar and Swiss, to indulge in more artisan, farmstead, ethnic and organic type cheeses.
As evidence, in Wisconsin, specialty cheese production rose by 9% in 2004 to 331 million lbs. In addition, the National Association for the Specialty Food Trade reports that nationwide sales of specialty cheese were up 29.1% in 2004 from 2002, to $905 million, excluding sales at Wal-Mart.
Americans are also consuming more cheese now than ever before with total U.S. per capita cheese consumption at an all time high of 31.2 lbs. A number of ...