COTTAGE cheese, popular in the 1980s, is making a comeback – with Scotland’s leading dairy brand increasing production by millions of kilos amid surging sales.
Graham’s Family Dairy said sales of the high-protein cheese product had risen by 40% — or two million kilograms of cottage cheese per year.
The firm, based in Bridge of Allan, Stirlingshire, is now running at production capacity, with plans including a £5m investment to bolster its cottage cheese production facilities to meet demand.
Grahams and supermarket chain Marks & Spencer say the revival is partly thanks to the global demand for high protein and low fat dairy products fuelled by recipes that have gone viral on Tik Tok.
One of the hottest food trends on social media, views of the hashtag #cottagecheese number a billion on TikTok alone, with recipes ranging from ice cream to cottage cheese bread.
Robert Graham, Managing Director of Graham’s Family Dairy, said: “Cottage Cheese has been a family favourite for many years. It’s light, extremely versatile and a much healthier choice due to its high protein and nutrient content.”
Mr Graham said the firm had also seen a boost in exports of cottage cheese to destinations from Ireland to Dubai.
He added: “Volume is up and showing no signs of slowing down, showing that cottage cheese isn’t retro anymore, it’s back and if our sales figures are anything to go by, here to stay.”
The growth is mirroring other retro trends taking over the UK food landscape. Waitrose revealed that a third of people had switched from a lower-fat product to a full-fat dairy product in 2023 while M&S Cafes defaulted to full-fat milk for coffee orders.
Chris Dawson, Senior Buyer Dairy Foods at Marks & Spencer Foods said: “In the 20 years I have been buying cheese I have never seen such amazing growth on Cottage cheese, as I have over the past year with strong volume sales.
“If anything, cottage cheese as a cheese category had been on a continuous downward spiral over many years until 2023. This unlikely ‘protein hero’ packed ingredient has caught us all by surprise.
“Retro, great value and hugely versatile, influencers discovered the wallflower of the dairy cabinet can be transformed into all manner of dishes, sweet and savoury — cottage cheese pancakes, bread, cookies, ice cream and even whipped cottage cheese — a new take on last year’s whipped feta craze.
“The buzz caught on with sales of cottage cheese at Marks & Spencer up in high double digit growth year on year.”
