For the first time in the modern history of the Russian Federation, cheese consumption in 2023 exceeded 1 million tons

The average annual growth rate of cheese production is about 11%. Over the past year, Russian cheese makers produced 792 thousand tons of cheese, which is 16% more than in 2022. The rest of the volume is imported from abroad. At the same time, 85% of imports come from Belarus. The growth continues this year: in January-February, Russia produced 136 thousand tons, which is 17% more than in the same period in 2023. Consumption is also growing - in January 2024 (there are no more recent data yet) it increased by 16% compared to the same period last year, Soyuzmoloko says. “Such an investment boom occurred against the backdrop of suppliers from non-CIS countries leaving the Russian market in 2014. Since 2012, the total volume of investments in the category has exceeded 101 billion rubles, of which the bulk (about 80%) has occurred since 2018. There is a trend in the industry of consolidation of cheese production and market consolidation, which will be relevant in the coming years,” ...