Magazine: Fewer holes in the cheese market

The cheese market became a bit less hectic last year: the price of milk didn’t change as often as before. Thanks to the rather constant cheese prices, consumer demand was also more balanced. Data by cheese manufacturers indicate a few-percent sales growth in the market for 2018 (in comparison with 2017).

Béla Nagy
marketing and PR director
Kőröstej

According to Béla Nagy, marketing and PR director of Kőröstej Zrt., sales growth is more difficult to achieve in the market of classic cheese products bought in large quantities. At the same time manufacturers have better chances for sales growth in the case of special products.

Mariann Nagy
sales development manager
Savencia Fromage &
Dairy Hungary

Mariann Nagy, sales development manager of Savencia Fromage & Dairy Hungary Zrt. told our magazine that semi-hard cheese varieties make up for half of the Hungarian market, but this segment is very much price-sensitive, so it didn’t manage to expand. On the contrary, volume sales increased in the convenience category of sliced cheese products.

Ildikó Tóth, senior brand manager of FrieslandCampina Hungária Zrt. called our attention to the changes in the semi-hard cheese segment: Trappist cheese is slowly but steadily losing dominance, while the Gouda, Edam and Emmental varieties are gaining ground. This trend has to do with the market entry of the Frico brand, which offers a large selection of premium Dutch cheeses, and with the conquest of discount supermarkets.

Ms Tóth revealed that demand had increased further for more expensive, premium cheese varieties (these cost more than HUF 2,700/kg). Hungarians buy half of the cheese from the deli counter and the other half are pre-packaged products, but the importance of the latter keeps growing. Among sales channels discount supermarkets are the most important. It is also because of them that the market share of private label products is almost 50 percent in volume.

Orsolya Kovács
innovation and project manager
Savencia Fromage &
Dairy Hungary

Orsolya Kovács, innovation and project manager of Savencia Fromage & Dairy informed that the main trends in the cheese market are health-consciousness, convenience and gourmet products. Another key trend is the demand for breaded cheese products and grill cheeses. Mr Nagy added that demand is also growing for free-from cheese products, but they still realise only a small proportion of sales.

Sándor Nagy
commercial director
Szarvasi Mozzarella

Sándor Nagy, commercial director of Szarvasi Mozzarella Kft. spoke about how hyper- and supermarkets are adopting the latest cheese trends, which is beneficial for the company because they manufacture light and lactose-free varieties too. They keep improving the packaging of products. The company’s latest product, Szarvasi Grill Mozzarella, debuted in April.

Mr Nagy shed light on the fact that they sell two thirds of their products in foreign markets. Kőröstej never stops innovating and the result of this work is new products, launched either in Hungary or abroad. Hajdú, Róna and Talléros products are regularly showcased at international trade fairs. This year the company plans to bring Hajdú grill cheeses to Hungarian consumers.

Frico is present in the Hungarian cheese market with many different flavours, from the relatively mild Gouda to the characteristic goat cheese Chevrette. Ms Tóth said: they want to bring Hungarian consumers out of their comfort zone, convincing them to try new cheese varieties: they simply must know how tasty a sandwich made with Dutch Gouda can be!

Tamás Kohánszky
brand manager
Savencia Fromage &
Dairy Hungary

Tamás Kohánszky, brand manager of Savencia Fromage & Dairy Hungary told Trade magazin: they feel that they need to give strong support to their brands because of the growing popularity of discount supermarkets and their private label products. Their flagship brand Medve will get major marketing support with television and outdoor presence, via digital tools and on online platforms.

Carlo Volpe
managing director
Óvártej

Carlo Volpe, managing director of Óvártej Zrt. informed us that their cheese sales had increased by 20 percent last year, and 2019 also started with promising sales results. Their sales are the strongest in the HoReCa channel, where demand is on the rise for ready-to-use products. There is demand for lactose-free and organic products here as well. With the ‘Óvártej 1903’ brand the company concentrates on the high-quality product segment. //