The natural cheese category managed to avoid gridlocks on the retail side in 2021, cruising at a comfortable speed with positive results. Dollar sales for the category rose 2.8% to $15,982.2 million, although unit sales fell very slightly — 0.2% — to 4,420.0 million, according to data from Chicago-based market research firm IRI for the 52 weeks ending Sept. 5, 2021.
Among the category’s subcategories, natural crumbled cheese enjoyed the smoothest ride. Its dollar sales jumped 11.3% to $499.9 million, while its unit sales climbed 8.1% to 118.3 million.