Market Intelligence: Import Displacement of Goat and Sheep Cheese

The goat and sheep cheese industry is a sizable market both nationally and internationally and continues to see significant growth rates. Domestically, US sheep and goat cheese production faces strong competition from imported products. As part of the USDA’s Dairy Business Innovation Initiative, the Wisconsin based center – the Dairy Business Innovation Alliance (DBIA) sought to investigate the challenges faced by domestic producers and identify opportunities to better compete with imported products. The DBIA has carried out a market intelligence survey to ascertain consumer attitudes and preferences. We also carried out a sensory review of specific domestic versus imported products to qualitatively define perceived differences. Due to this, DBIA believes import displacement can lead to a growth opportunity. DBIA proposed this market intelligence and sensory project to understand consumer behavior when purchasing goat and sheep cheeses and to provide small to medium size cheesemakers with more insight into the goat and sheep market.

The initial cheese styles were identified based on imported sales volume. These cheeses were identified based on sales volumes, availability, and with input from goat and sheep cheese producers. The cheeses within each style were selected based on their representation of the specific style and availability. In some cases, the original selections were substituted or removed from the testing list due to difficulty of procurement. The cheese styles identified included Manchego, wine-soaked goat cheese, Pecorino Romano, sheep’s milk feta, Roquefort, mold ripened goat cheese, ash ripened goat cheese and goat gouda

In total, the DBIA sensory panels evaluated 27 goat and sheep cheeses from around the world across 8 cheese styles. For goat cheese, 12 cheeses were selected and evaluated across 4 sensory panels. For sheep cheese, 15 cheeses were selected and evaluated across 4 sensory panels. In each panel, 1-2 international cheeses were compared to 1-2 domestic versions. The international cheeses are produced in France, Italy, Spain, or Holland. The domestic cheeses are produced in Wisconsin, Vermont, California, or Minnesota. DBIA intentionally did not specify the cheeses evaluated for purposes of confidentiality; any interested cheesemaker should reach out to understand how your products may fit into this evaluation.

Full details from each panel (8 in total) can be found in the full report download at the bottom of this page.

Goat Cheeses

One very large hurdle for any marketing of goat cheese was the prevailing idea or understanding by the consumers in the local area that goat cheese is just a soft, tangy cheese in a log shape (basically all goat cheese is Chevre). The narrow association with Chevre as “goat cheese” is prevalent, rather than thinking any variety of cheese could be made with goat’s milk. This may require some concerted efforts towards educating and advertising.

Sheep Cheeses

Unlike goat’s milk cheeses, sheep’s milk cheeses seemed much more widely understood and accepted as much more than just a singular cheese variety. The general perception and expectations were that sheep’s milk cheese is much creamier than cow’s milk and has a more intense flavor.

There were a myriad of valuable insights gained over the course of these focus groups. Specific domestic brands were all mentioned many times as having an inherent perception of quality, known for good cheeses. The name and packaging/branding have incredible value, especially if it is applied consistently across their portfolio of products. When possible, these are probably some of the biggest existing advantages in the market. Any ideas or recommendations suggested in this report should always be viewed through the lens of the overall brand first.

Another theme seen across the focus groups was components of cheese packaging that consumers found to be important and appealing. They are summarized below:

• Goat/Sheep identity: The fact that the cheese is made with milk other than cow’s milk needs to be concisely and clearly communicated. This could be through text/name or visually using simple sheep/goat imagery or icons. Besides being easily recognized as more premium or exotic, many consumers expressed that sometimes friends or family have certain preferences or dietary restrictions that lead them to seek out goat/sheep cheese specifically. One of the biggest disappointments people had with packaging of the cheeses studied was when it was either confusing or not obvious that it was not cow’s milk cheese.

• Simplistic/clean design: Consumers did not like labels with multiple or hard to read fonts, clashing or washed-out colors, or cluttered panels. A resounding theme was “less is more”.

• Flavor Information: Panelists really appreciated cheeses that included descriptions of flavor notes they could expect to see in the cheese. Outside of very well-known products, most consumers felt a product was much more approachable and desirable if they had a sense of what it would taste like. Similarly, ideas or suggestions for what to pair the cheese with were also appreciated. These likely could be included on a rear panel to prevent clutter on the front label.

• Distribution / Retail Labels: Some cheeses are resold at major retailers or through online vendors. Some utilize the cheesemakers provided label, while others choose not to. There was never an instance when a retailer’s label was preferred over the cheesemaker’s label. The cheesemaker should be aware how each retailer is labeling and presenting their cheese and advocate that the intended label is being used whenever possible. Retailers should also be aware of the impact their labeling choices can have on consumer perception.

• Nutrition Facts: Nutritional facts panels were polarizing for participants. Some insisted they be included, looking for information on things like calories, sodium levels, etc. Others were adamant that cheese is generally consumed as an indulgence and nutrition information was less important. So, a suggested best practice would be to include it on a less prominent part of the package, again to reduce clutter.

• Seeing the Cheese: There were a surprising number of people who made it clear that being able to see the cheese was important to them. This is particularly important for mold ripened cheeses, but also to see things like crystal development, browning, rind thickness, etc. Packaging material and design is a balance of many things, including protecting the flavor, but the consumer perception was that at least a small view or window of the product, or being able to see a larger piece of cheese being cut at the retailer was desirable.

• Awards: A label highlighting the fact that cheese had won an award was consistently seen as helping it stand out from the crowd. For a newer brand or product, an “award winning” cheese gave consumers some confidence in making at least an initial purchase to try it.

A rather unexpected takeaway from the study is the reality of the variety of ways cheese is distributed and sold. The cheese may be pre-cut and packaged and then sold at retail, larger pieces may be shipped to stores and then sliced and packaged on-site before selling, and finally the cheese may be cut to order at a retail establishment and wrapped only after a customer purchases it. Additionally, retailers may affix labels provided with the cheese, or their own labels, or both. These all greatly impact whether a consumer can see the cheese, taste the cheese, or ask questions about the cheese prior to purchase or not. It may also impact the flavor/quality of the cheese greatly. This is further compounded when considering online retailers and the logistics of shipping cheese across the country via couriers. In other words, the retailer has a great deal of influence on how a cheese may be perceived (label choices, storage/age, potential abuse with improper packaging, pricing, etc.). Finally, retail channels also impact the reach and availability of a product. Many of the cheeses in the panels were very much enjoyed, but when participants asked where they could be purchased locally, often the answer was only online. Many participants in the groups reported buying their cheeses at retailers like Trader Joe’s, Aldi, Costco, and Whole Foods. Being able to distribute to these national retailers is a large hurdle to overcome for many smaller producers of goat and sheep cheese in the United States.

Pricing is another big consideration. The primary trend seen was that domestic products were more expensive than imported. As discussed above, pricing parity is less of a concern for the protected cheeses and the general cheeses, and of most importance to the variant cheeses.

To summarize, the prospects for the domestic market of goat and sheep cheeses appear bright. There are seemingly broadly applicable labeling best practices that can make existing cheeses more attractive to consumers in the store. Further exploration should be done on consumer perception of mixed-milk cheeses as a solution for price and scale improvements of domestic goat/sheep milk supply. Leveraging existing popular and recognized cheesemaker brands is an asset. Finally, partnering with, educating, and advocating to retailers will be critical in efforts to increase reach and availability of already popular domestic cheeses.