Farmhouse Dairy
Farmhouse Dairy
The retail cheese market in Ireland according to Kantar Worldpanel is valued at €177.5m. It accounts for 17 per cent of total dairy and is the second most important category after fresh milk. In the 12 months to January 2014, the value of the Irish retail cheese market declined by over two per cent. The growth in private label continues to hamper retail prices. Speciality cheese grew ahead of the total market at almost five per cent and is valued at €40m. The Irish farmhouse cheese market is valued at just over €3.2m at retail level in Ireland. Prefamliy, empty nesters and retired shoppers over index on farmhouse cheese compared to the average cheese shopper. Overall, the Irish farmhouse cheese sector is valued at circa €12m with €4.5m as exports. The single largest barrier to building the sector is the lack of scale. In the main the sector operates at a scale where margins are low and cash generation is small. In essence the sector is caught in a cycle where the lack of scale is constraining its development. Greater scale will result in more brand equity, higher margins, dividends, greater capacity to grow the business.
