Cheese survey shows support for artisans among Millennials and Gen Z

Photo caption: Stephen Fleming serving a customer at George & Joseph Cheesemongers in Chapel Allerton, Leeds. 

The Real Cheese Project has released the results of its first consumer survey, with data obtained through the world’s leading product intelligence platform, Vypr recording significantly higher levels of interest and support for British artisan cheese among Millennials and Gen Z. While only 17.61% of the survey’s 1,000+ respondents claimed to purchase artisan cheese on a weekly basis, this figure rose sharply to 35.32% among those aged 25-34, showing that for many at least, Britain’s artisan cheese isn’t just for Christmas.

As part of its mission to promote everything that makes artisan cheese in the UK so special, The Real Cheese Project used the Vypr platform to assess which elements of real cheesemaking consumers would be willing to pay more for. ‘Better Taste’ came out on top (85.14%), but this was followed closely by ‘Higher Standards of Animal Welfare’ (79.23%), ‘Support for Family Farms & Local Economies’ (78.05%), ‘More Sustainable Production’ (75.89%), ‘Made with Local Milk’ (75.1%), and ‘Handmade’ (72.93%).

The highest levels of interest in these hallmarks of real cheese were recorded among Men aged 18-44, while the Vypr platform also identified big variations in buying habits among different groups. 42.86% of Men aged 25-34 said they purchased artisan cheese on a weekly basis, followed by Men aged 18-24 (34.48%), Men aged 35-44 (30.38%) and Women aged 25-34 (27.78%). At the other end of the scale, only 3.8% of Women aged 45-54 said they purchased artisan cheese weekly, despite being one of the groups most likely to purchase cheese of some kind on a weekly basis (67.5%), behind only Men aged 45-54 (67.95%).

While returning sobering results for Britain’s flourishing artisan cheese community in some portions of the population, the more positive figures among younger groups suggest opportunities to shift the balance towards artisan over industrial. The scale of the current disparity was not fully appreciated by many, with 23.38% of respondents estimating that over 50% of total annual cheese sales in the UK could be attributed to artisan cheese, and 81.16% guessing over 10%, whereas industry estimates place the figure around 2-3%.

Sam Brice, co-founder of The Real Cheese Project, commented:

“As Christmas nears and artisan cheese jumps to the top of people’s shopping lists, now is a great time to think about why we should be getting behind our small scale makers and independent retailers throughout the rest of the year. Big support among Millennials and Gen Z bodes well for the future, but perhaps most encouragingly of all, we’re seeing the vast majority of respondents saying they’re willing to pay more for sustainably farmed, higher welfare, handmade cheese produced by family-run farms using local milk. The problem is, most people don’t have any idea how many amazing artisan cheeses we have in the UK, let alone the incredible things that our farmers and makers are doing for both people and planet. Alongside the rest of the real cheese community, we’re working to change that, so the rich tapestry of British cheese can remain intact for next Christmas and far beyond.”

Earlier this year, The Real Cheese Project launched its ‘Cheese Crowd’ monthly subscription, created to big up Britain’s artisan cheese community and get more people buying the good stuff. Inviting the curd curious to embark on a real cheese adventure, each box comes with a new cheese to try, a monthly cheese zine, a hand-picked pairing, a pin badge for new subscribers, and access to an online tasting event to meet the cheesemaker.

5% of all profits go into a Real Cheese support fund, which will be donated to initiatives that protect, develop and progress real cheese in the UK.

For more information on The Real Cheese Project, visit www.therealcheeseproject.co.uk.