Cheese Boards or Cheese Boredom? Why Christmas Dairy Demand Is Anything But Flat

Ok we will try not to make this article cheesy (we said try). Christmas in the UK used to be turkey, trimmings and a pud that doubled as a kettlebell. HOWEVER, in 2025, festive menus are getting cheesier – literally. Whether it’s cheddar, stilton, a cranberry-wrapped winter brie or a truffle-infused soft cheese, Christmas has quietly become the dairy industry’s busiest, most inventive season. And behind every festive cheese board is a back-room engine: the processing lines churning, pasteurising, and homogenising.

If you run or supply those lines, keep reading or if you just love cheese. Because this year’s Christmas surge is anything but small.

The Numbers Don’t Lie: Cheese Demand Is Heating Up:

• According to a 2024 industry review, the UK cheese market saw a +3.1% value growth last year, signalling a rebound after a dip during the earlier cost-of-living squeeze.
• More interestingly: in the two weeks to 28 Dec 2024, sales of traditional “festive” cheeses like stilton and British blue spiked. In fact, volumes of stilton/blue cheese sold in December accounted for 23.7% of total 2024 volume sales.
• Demand is continuing into 2025. A survey conducted in November 2025 reported that 8 out of 10 consumers plan to eat as much or more cheese over the festive period than a standard month.
• The growth isn’t just domestic. Globally, the cheese market is booming  as of 2025, it’s valued at around US$105.5 billion, with projections to reach US$178.5 billion by 2035, growing at an accelerated CAGR of 4 – 5%

Festive Flavours and Fancy Boards

The classic cheddar, brie, stilton trio is still a main character but newer, flavour-led products are gaining traction fast here are some examples (let us know if you are yay or nay):

• Think herb-, truffle-, chilli-, whisky- or cranberry-infused cheeses, soft cheeses with inclusions, and limited-edition seasonal blends
• Retailers and food-service buyers are increasingly stocking “cheese selection packs” (of smaller portions / mixed textures) rather than single big wheels because convenience + variety = buyer appeal.
• As consumers seek new tastes and experiences, “cheese grazing tables” and social-media-ready boards are replacing the modest November cheeseboard. For producers, that means more SKUs, more small-batch flavour runs, and more demand for flexible processing.

This shift isn’t a fad, it’s structural. Cheeses that were once niche now sit rival-side with cheddar at Christmas.

Machinery That Matters: Why The Right Kit Powers The Christmas Cheese Boom

And behind every festive cheese board is a back-room engine: the processing: pasteurisation, draining, cutting, moulding, ageing and packing etc and here is the machines for you:

• Cheese vats:  essential for consistent curd-setting, especially when experimenting with textures, inclusions or alternative recipes.
• Homogenisers: to ensure smooth, even texture and consistent fat distribution, especially in soft cheeses or cream-based spreads.
• Pasteurisers: vital for food safety, quality control and shelf-life particularly important when output volume rises dramatically around the festive period.
• Universal process vessels (e.g. ROKK CCM multifunctional cookers): ideal for producing processed cheeses or mixing inclusions (herbs, cranberries, truffle, spices), controlled heating/cooling, and small to medium batch flexibility.

In short: with the right machine mix, producers can handle seasonal spikes, experiment with new formats or flavours, and hit tight retail deadlines all without compromising quality or food safety.

The Takeaway: This Season, Cheese Isn’t Boring IT IS Booming

The Festive season has transformed. What used to be a nice-to-have cheese board is now a retail staple, a social media moment, and a serious production challenge for the best-equipped dairies.

If you’ve got the right vats, churns, vessels, homogenisers and pasteurisers  and you’ve serviced them recently you’re well placed to ride the wave. If not, now’s the time to act.

References:

1. https://store.mintel.com/report/uk-cheese-market-report
2. https://ahdb.org.uk/news/consumer-insight-christmas-2024-a-great-year-for-gammon-and-british-cheese
3. https://ahdb.org.uk/news/consumer-insight-christmas-predictions-2025-a-potential-cracker-for-red-meat-and-dairy
4. https://www.foodnavigator.com/Article/2025/09/16/global-cheese-market-to-reach-1785-billion-by-2035/
5. https://www.imarcgroup.com/uk-cheese-market
6. https://gtaic.ai/market-reports/cheese-market-united-kingdom-outlook-in-2025