British food has long had a reputation overseas for being bland or stodgy – but it appears that our palate is becoming more sophisticated.
Tesco, the UK’s biggest supermarket, has reported a huge spike in the demand for gourmet cheeses such as Comté, Ossau-Iraty, Morbier and Chaource.
The supermarket giant says its Tesco Finest products have grown in popularity, with ‘continental’ cheese sales growing the most.
Tesco’s £3.55 Triple Crème Brie has been crowned the most popular cheese over the last year, with sales almost doubling. Elsewhere, sales for the £4 Ossau-Iraty have increased by 80 per cent, while the £3.55 Morbier is up by 70 per cent.
But the demand for gourmet and specialty cheeses does not stop there. Vintage Gouda and St Félicien sales are up by more than 50 per cent, while demand for Chaource and Comté is up by more than 40 per cent.
Tesco says the desire for premium cheeses are not at the expense of traditional British cheeses, including cheddar and Stilton, but simply shows customers are opting for more sophisticated tastes to add to their cheese boards.
Charlotte Gamlick, a cheese buyer at Tesco, explained: ‘This is a trend we first noticed during lockdown as people weren’t able to go out to restaurants they were trading up to fancier cheeses when shopping.
‘But that trend has become even more pronounced now during harder times with people entertaining more at home and that has led to shoppers treating themselves to new cheeses as well as picking up their classic British favourites like Cheddar and Stilton.
‘While the likes of Brie, Camembert, Emmental, Gruyère and Gouda are all established top sellers and have graced the cheeseboards of UK cheese connoisseurs for many years, it’s lesser known varieties such as Chaource, Morbier, St. Felicien and Ossau-Oraty which are starting to win new fans in the UK.’
Meanwhile Jason Hinds, of cheese retailer Neal’s Yard Dairy, said there has been a ‘sea change’ in the sales of cheese.
He told The Times it was ‘very encouraging’ to see the growth of specialty cheeses and believes that TV cooking shows may have contributed to changing Brits’ attitudes to foods such as cheese.
Alongside the growth of interest in cheese at a supermarkets, the number of specialty cheese shops has also grown in the UK.
But Mr Hinds says there is still a long way to go before British consumers have the same understanding of cheese as the French.
He said this was because there are hundreds and hundreds of cheese shops in France.
Tesco , the UK’s biggest supermarket, has reported a huge spike in the demand for gourmet cheeses such as Comté, Ossau-Iraty, Morbier and Chaource
As Tesco reports increased sales of Continental cheeses, Europeans are also indulging in more British cheeses.
The export of British cheese soared 15 per cent in 2022, with 80 per cent sent to the European union, according to the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board.
Britain has also made its mark on the French cheese market, accounting for nearly five per cent of all cheese imports to the country.
John Farrand, managing director of the Guild of Fine Food, told The Times that British cheesemaking is in ‘rude health’.
But while Brits may be looking at more premium options, a bizarre TikTok trend has driven a resurgence in cottage cheese.
The once popular ‘diet food’ in the 1970s has made a comeback in the UK, courtesy of Gen Z.
UK retailers have reported significant increases in sales following a wave of social media influencers sharing recipes for the dairy product, which is made from milk curds.
‘It’s come from absolutely nowhere,’ Robert Graham, managing director of Graham’s Family Dairy, told The Guardian earlier this month.
‘Since May of last year, when there was a TikTok craze that went on, cottage cheese sales for us are up 40%.’